Multi-tasking Mama

I've come to realize that multi-tasking is an inevitable side effect of motherhood (slightly better than stretch marks, sweaters decorated with spit-up, and the complete loss of any body-modesty). There are just too many tasks and details to keep straight, manage, organize, plan for and deal with to not become some sort of multi-tasking Robo-Mom.

Pre-baby I was a champ relaxer. I wanted to sit on the couch, watch tv, read a book, nap. My husband was the one saying "what are we going to do this weekend? wanna see a movie? go to dinner? rollerskating? bowling? well, what do you want to do??" while I was typically responding "nothing" or "nap". While I was by no means "lazy" (what needed to get done always got done and I was happy to do it).

Well, now that I'm a working mom I feel like I'm going in "plaid" most of the time. (Check out the link if you don't know what I'm talking about. Or, if you do and you just want a little "Space Balls" in your day.) At any given moment I'm in the middle of 4 or 5 tasks, and planning out how to get the next 20 or 30 done. And yet, I'm never "done." Of course, being done is not an option, at least for the next 18 or so years.

I've seen many mothers, including my own, burn themselves out in the overwhelming, and frankly, impossible attempt to get it all done. And yet, I am driven by the same urge to have the laundry done and folded, dishes done, house clean, family fed and clean, dogs attended too, books read, movies watched, bills filed, taxes organized, Retirement fund rebalanced, etc, etc, etc, etc.

You get the general idea. Somewhere along the way I bought into the idea that I could, should and would (come hell or high water!) have it all and be it all.

And all of that sounds pretty good. Who doesn't want to have a wildly romantic marriage, perfectly attended to children, a clean, nice house, a fulfilling career, lifelong friendships, all while remaining well rested? And there are plenty of people telling us that not only possible, but practically our birthright and our obligation.

A few days ago my husband and I climbed into bed at the end of the day and sat watching TV. After about 30 seconds, I announced "I'm bored." Such words I had never uttered before in my life. I strove to be bored, to be honest. I wanted to sit in that bed and do nothing! And now, here I was, suddenly feeling bored as my mind struggled to shift into a slower gear.

Luckily I'm smart enough to know that this break-neck speed can't sustain itself for long, and can often have disasterous results. So I also try to be aware of when my husband is inviting me to just sit with him and watch television or talk or whatever. I try to remember the value of resting and taking time to myself to re-group, or whatever it is that I might need at that moment. To be present for more of my life than just the "to-do" list.

So I'm still planning on striving for being and having all I can, but somehow, slowing down long enough to enjoy it too!

I think I'll go sit on the couch! Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

-One Philly Mommy

6 month check up - a grateful day

My son had his 6 month check up today, and, once again, all is well.

I know people who've struggled with infertility, and those who've struggled with health challenges to their pregnancies or even terrifying health scares in their young, young children.

So my only thought today is "thank you."

Thank you for my health, for my husband's health and my child's health.

Record breaking snow storms to become family lore

Well, Philly, here we go, another big snow storm is raging outside our doors. Is anyone else ready for Spring? I know I sure am.

Part of me knows that, no matter how much this weather annoys me, and traps me inside (a blessing and a curse for the working-from-home-Mom. I'm sometimes so happy to get out of the house, I get a little too dressed up for pediatrician visits..), I'll always remember this winter fondly. Of course, its the year my son was born and practically everyday is fillled with firsts.

But I expect that this winter will eventually take on a practically mythical state. If my son is anything like me when I was a child, I expect he'll be fascinated with stories about himself, about his life. About where and when he came from. He'll be fascinated because he won't be able to imagine Mommy and Daddy without him (after all, he's always known us as Mommy and Daddy) I expect he'll hear stories about the year of the "record-breaking" snow storms in Philadelphia, his first year, and be fascinated and amazed.

For us, this record-breaking snow fall will be woven into the story of my family. Walking to a friend's house with him bundled in the Baby Bjorn. The storm before Christmas, when we tried to have our Holiday Party and he was dressed as Santa, but only our friends within walking distance could make it (we still had a great time). The extra days Mommy and Daddy got to stay home because no one was going to work.

These will become my family's story.

So I guess this next snow storm (and the next, and the next...) will still annoy me, but part of me is also gathering little bits of story and wonder to share with my son when he asks me "what happened when I was a baby?"

Re-thinking saving for College...

Or....One Philly Mommy takes some advice from a Working Girl.....

After reading my post about feeling pressured to save for college and retirement and soccer practice, and...., and...., and, a friend of mine forwarded me something she'd read on a blog.

The blog is at http://www.karenburnsworkinggirl.com/?p=1657, and you should check it out.

The question in this particular post is whether or not college is worth it. Working Girl asks lots of intelligent questions about whether or not college is worth the cost, particularly with the sky rocketing costs. Many of the most successful people in this world did not attend college. And many more did not do well at college, so is this a fair question.

I am not about to get into a debate about whether or not college is worthwhile, but this blog did something super valuable for me anyway.

It made me realize that, while its under the guise of wanting to do what's best for my son, I've really been pretty narrowminded about the whole thing. What if he doesn't WANT to go to college? What if my pressure for saving for something 18 years away creates undo and unfair pressure and expectations in my son? What if he would be the world's happiest plumber? Who am I, especially at his ripe old age of 6 months, to start in on all of that already?

I think I'll stop thinking about that saving's account as the "College" fund and start thinking about it as the "Jump-start to Life" fund. It takes a load of pressure off of me, and maybe will take some off my son too!

Many, many thanks to my friend for forwarding me the link to Working Girl's blog. And many thanks to Working Girl for making this One Philly Mommy think outside the box!

How to have a good working from home experience...

Get really, really lucky!

Honestly, today was one of those great "I can do anything" days. I was smart, skinny, pretty, loved my house and everyone in it!

I was up at 5:30am, even though I'd only gone to bed at 1am, after a fabulous conversation with my little brother (they don't happen often enough, so when I get the chance, I take it, no matter what time it is!).

Being up at 5:30 meant I had time to nurse AND feed my son, squeeze in a workout (ok, it was only 10 minutes, but it was a Biggest Loser cardio workout, and it still kicked my butt), fold 2 loads of (unfortunately wrinkled, luckily its the sock-tshirts-sleepy pants load) laundry that had been waiting for days, set up dinner (let's hear it for Crock-Pot meals - we're having a Beef Stew tonight...), take a shower AND dry my hair (probably the most exciting part, I sometimes have a hard time fitting it in) and eat breakfast all BEFORE my 8:30 am start time.

Phew! That's like a whole days worth of stuff right there.

Then, even work went well - I had a call, during which puppies and baby slept peacefully away...much to my relief. And it was one of those days when I actually felt productive and got to cross things off my list. Even though more probably got added to my list than taken off, at least I was crossing things off the list. And there is always tomorrow.

Hubby and I had plans to run to the grocery store since they are forecasting yet ANOTHER snow storm Thursday-Friday of this week. (If I'm the one breaking the news to you, I'm really, really sorry!) But since it happened to be pouring when we were ready to leave, he decided to go by himself so we didn't have to drag the baby through the rain. (What a thoughtful guy!) And now that we have baby, the snow storm necessities are baby food, wipes, and rice cereal instead of pizza, beer, bread and milk. Though we'll get that stuff too!

So its been a great day. The only downside is begging the dogs to actually "go" when they go outside. They get to the edge of the porch and look at me like "you're kidding right? you want me to sniff in a circle to find the right spot to do my business in this?"

It reminds me of when our Boston Terrier was a puppy and we actually went outside, in the pouring rain, at 3 am, and held an umbrella over her so she would pee. Love makes you do crazy things! Course now the novelty has worn off and we just don't let them back in until they've done what they have to do!

I'm hoping I don't pay for the lack of sleep tomorrow and that today wasn't just some kind of sleep-deprived high, but even if tomorrow ain't great, today was!

Is there ever enough money?

So I made the mistake of logging into the Personal Finance section of MSN today, admittedly, not the most intellectual source of information, but I'm pretty sure I won't get flagged at work for going on that site.

Sigh.

Do you have any idea how much babies, college, mortgages, and retirement costs? Of course, the short answer is "more than you have!" Now, don't get me wrong, my husband and I are blessed, blessed, blessed. As a girl my parents filed bankruptcy and we survived on welfare and food stamps for a few years. I am most proud of my mother for busting her hump to raise four children on her own, go to college so she could support us, and get us off welfare. We were not going to get comfortable getting something for free, and we certainly weren't going to let being on welfare be the end of our story. She instilled in us the value of working hard and earning a living. That earning a living is something to be proud of, no matter where that means you work.

And my husband and I live a life better than I could've dreamed of as that young girl. We both have fulfilling jobs that pay well enough that we can afford everything that we need and a lot of what we want. We even have some left over to save. We can usually afford a few long weekends away each year.

But now that there is an extra being to support, another set of dreams and goals and wants and needs to finance, there is just a bit more pressure. Daycare, diapers and rice cereal will soon become days at Chuckee Cheese and soccer shoes, then Prom and car insurance then college.

I read http://www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com/ - a fabulous blog with concrete advice about saving money, but also making more money, by performing above and beyond at work and also by creating alternate income sources. The philosophy being that if one source of income goes away, you'll have a secondary income to support yourself and your family. This philosophy struck a chord with me. But how does a working Mom with an already jam packed schedule find a way to make more money? Well, there are lots of options, and I haven't sorted them all out, but the sense that I should be doing this remains.

We save through http://www.ingdirect.com/, who up until recently had the best interest rates we could find. At one point the interest rates were over 4%. I think now they're barely over 1%, but they say they still beat the national average. We've had a savings account at http://www.ingdirect.com/ for 4 years, so we're loyal at this point and hope our loyalty is paid off with a return of the higher interest rates. (Stupid economy!)

We want to provide everything we can for our child(ren). Music lessons, math tutors, vacations, occasional new clothes, but most importantly (for me anyway) a sense of security. The knowledge that the heat will always be on, there will always be food (more vegetables than chips, but still, there will be food) in the kitchen, that if they are sick they will go to the doctor, that what they need will be provided. I know only too well that there are too many people in this world who can't count on those things being true.

So when I start to read about the cost of college, that children cost a billion, trillion dollars to raise (only a slight exaggeration) and that to retire comfortably I need to be saving roughly all my income, I start to freak out a bit. How can I possibly provide all that? But then I remember where I came from, how far I've made it, and that I never imagined I'd have a life this good.

If I've made it this far, just how far can I make it? Pretty far, I bet.

Swap party

This weekend was a pretty busy weekend. We had a 2nd birthday party on Saturday and cheered on friends of ours who ran the Frost Bite 5-miler in the morning. We also stopped by our travel agent to confirm details for a trip to Mexico we just booked for November. It is my husband and my favorite vacation spot, and we can't wait to take our son.

Since our son is an early riser, regardless of what time Mommy and Daddy go to sleep, our weekends are a bit more productive (sometimes). Both Saturday and Sunday of this weekend we were all up at 6am, though we did manage to get a 7 am - 9 am family nap in the morning. (How do we make that a tradition, I wonder?) So I also managed to finally get the salt and boot prints off my floors. And make a dent in the laudry, though there's still more to do.

And today, Mommy got some solo-time! (Don't worry, I adore my son and husband. And two dogs. And cat. And phone. And house. But sometimes, its nice to be away from all that love!) I finally made it to my friend's Swap party. She's had 3, and because of pregnancy, and then brand-spankin' new motherhood (he was like a month old at the last one), this was the first one I could attend.

The philosophy of a Swap Party is simple, but brilliant. Gather all your unwanted but still loveable items. Bring them together with all your friends unwanted but still loveable items, and SWAP! Today people brought clothes, shoes, household items, makeup, you name it. Everything gets sorted into category, and then, you shop!

I brought a bag of clothes (you know, the clothes that are still so cute but that you feel incredibly uncute in them? Either they're a smidge too small, or I'm a smidge too old to being wearing...), a wall mounted jewelry amoire (that I love, but my home has plaster walls, and I had nightmares of it falling off), and a box of vacation-read Romance novels to swap.

I came home with 1 pair of shoes, 3 AWESOME skirts, a box of 10 matched picture frames in various sizes, a dress, a wallet, and a sleeveless sweater the same color as 3 other shirts I already have, but love, love, love. Along with a bracelet and a necklace in a similiar color....

Remaining items get donated or saved up for the next swap. (Kudos to the Swap planners, its a lot of work to manage the left behind items...)

A Swap Party is great fun because its like shopping but its free (love the price) and without the hassle of the Mall, and its great quality time with friends. I highly recommend it!

Do I really want to be a working Mom?

Sometimes I can't help but ask myself if I can really do all this? Do I even want to be a working Mom? (Trust me, I know all Mom's "work", what I mean is "have a job where I have to be somewhere at a certain time and report to someone else who decides what I have to do and when I have to do it." But that just takes too long to say, so I go with "working".) Do I even have what it takes to be a working Mom? Let alone a working-from-home Mom? (Sometimes the lines and expectations get blurry...)

Sometimes wearing all those Mom-Wife-Employee-Person hats gets confusing and I end up doing a lousy job at one or all of them. So I wonder - should I take one of these freakin' hats off? If on any given day I'm going to be a lousy wife, distracted mother, defiant employee, and all around crank, is it worth it?

I'm relatively new to the whole experience of being a mother, and a working-from-home mother. And in the current economic situation where mergers and lay-offs and unemployment rates are all anyone can talk about, its easy to let the pressure build. Better not make ANY mistakes, better not EVER say NO to a request from a boss or a colleague, just in case they're looking for someone's position to "eliminate." Even if the request is unreasonable or nearly impossible. Just smile, say yes, and get it done.

In Mika's book (check back to an old post) she says women too easily let their jobs treat them like bad boyfriends. Making demands that aren't fair, asking for way more than they are giving, always taking and never giving, never asking "is this ok for you?". And women accept being treated that way because we believe the opportunities are limited for us, that this might be as good as it gets, that if we say "no" we'll never be asked again.  I've never been one of those "its better to be unhappy than be alone" chicks (honestly never understood it either) so I liked to believe I'd never let a job treat me that way either.

But having a family changes things and THE GREATER GOOD (dun dun duuunnn) takes on a whole new meaning. What is BEST for the family? What is the RIGHT thing to do? Is being a working Mom ok, even if it means sometimes I'm not at the top of ALL my games? (Is anyone ever at the top of all their games?) And my job feels less like a way to find fulfillment and provide for myself financially and more like something I can't mess up or it will ruin my family.

Or maybe that's too much pressure! Just seeing that in print makes me thing to myself "Gee, over dramatize much?!" 

So maybe some of my points are exaggerated, but the questions remain the same and are constantly being re-evaluated:

Can I do this?
Do I even want to do this?
Am I doing a good job at this?
Is the cost worth the benefits?
Is there a better way to go about this?
What's really important?

And really, I guess I'd rather ask myself those questions than blindly go through the motions. Because, so far, the answer is still Yes, I want to be a working Mom, and I think, so far, this is working out as the best thing for me, for my family and for my son.

But if I keep asking the question, and someday the answer is "No", at least I'll know its time to make a change, and hopefully, have the guts to make that change.

Pure joy in my son's laughter

Today was a day that started ok and ended in pure joy. (Isn't that funny how that happens sometimes?)

We all managed to leave for work and daycare on time, maybe even a minute or two early (don't say that outloud or it will never happen again!). I couldn't find my good leather gloves though (a Christmas present from my mother-in-law a few years ago, and for some reason, these gloves make me feel fabulous. Cashmere lined leather could do that for a girl.).

Work was busy, trying to cram in a few days worth of "office" work into one. But I managed to get the tasks that absolutely have to be done in the office, done. Phew, a success.

Once I got home, though, things got better and better and better. I'm sorry to admit that isn't always the case. Not because of "home" per se, but because I find it diffucult to leave the stress of the day at the door, or probably more likely, I feel like I have to do the dishes, laundry, etc, etc, etc, before I am allowed to relax and enjoy my family.

Since I am being honest, I will tell you that my floors are covered in bootprints and salt from the recent storms, I still have loads of laundry to do from our trip (even some from long before the weekend), a sink full of dirty dishes (but a dishwasher full of clean ones), at least a hamper full of dirty baby clothes (and one poopy sleeper, from a "rear to ear" poop, is soaking) and probably a diaper pail in need of emptying.

But today I came home to a husband who'd scheduled my car for service tomorrow (thanks honey!), a Valentine "from" my son (Play and Learn, his daycare, sends home projects and gifts for the parents at the holidays. This one was a card and a cute Valentine themed snow globe.). In addition to scheduling the car for service, my husband had already fed our son dinner (he's up to Gerber's Sweet Potatoes, probably the cause of that poop) so we could all go out to dinner. So off we all went to dinner.

At dinner my son was cute and sweet - cooing and laughing, alternately trying to eat his toys and tossing them on the floor. The women at the table next to us announced we should be a magazine shoot, we were such a cute family. (Never bad for the ego...)

And after dinner we came home to get baby ready for bed. After a lengthy session of blow-belly and the purest laughs I've ever heard, our son was off to sleep.

By far, my favorite part of any day, is the sound of pure joy. The laugh that is real and genuine and such an honest expression of joy that it is involuntary. Such joy to me means we are safe, because in my experience it is hard to freely express joy when you are afraid, or sad or feel threatened or unsure in anyway. So to hear my son laugh, so purely and freely, fills me with joy and peace.

I hope you got your "laugh" today - whatever it is that brings you joy and peace.

Mika Brzenzinski at Philadelphia Free Library

A few weeks ago, I had a rather exciting evening (at least for me). A few of us went to Happy Hour after work and Mika Brzezinski spoke about her book “All Things at Once” at the Library in Philadelphia. What a full day!

It was a day that I had looked forward too for a long time. First, I’d be in the office, which always gives me a chance to talk to grown ups, but also gives me some professional face time. Especially now that I am working from home, I find it crucial that my colleagues know that I continue to be a hard worker and dedicated to my tasks (all the more reason I want to muzzle my dogs - see yesterday's post).

Following my big day in the office, a group of us went out for Happy Hour at The Prime Rib at 17th & Locust (by the way, they have some pretty good Happy Hour specials). There was a pleasant mix of Mommies and un-Mommies, singles and marrieds, boys and girls so this is also good for me. It reminded me what its like to be 6 months into dating someone and totally smitten. It reminded me that time with my (now)almost 6 month old is precious because one day he’ll be a year and then 17 years and on and on. It reminded me that as tired and stressed and worried as I can let myself become, I truly am blessed. It reminded me that it’s just money and if I’m not going to enjoy myself for all the work I do, what’s the point of working this hard? (A good lesson to be reminded of.) Not to mention, a few glasses of wine with friends never hurts!

Following Happy Hour I hopped a cab to the Library at 19th and Vine. Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough were speaking about her new book “All Things at Once”. Since this is a book about juggling working and motherhood it was something that I am definitely interested in. Mika and Joe told stories from her book and touched on some of the topics they discuss on their show “Morning Joe” on MSNBC. Governor Ed Rendell was there to introduce Mika and Joe and was more relaxed than any of the other times I'd seen him speak.

Mika talked about a particularly stressful time in her life - when she had 2 young children - her youngest only 4 months old - and she had returned to her very busy schedule at work. During one of these crazy, busy, sleep deprived days, she was in a hurry and fell down the stairs while holding her 4 month old daughter. The end of the story is that her daughter is ok, but there were some terrifying moments for her in the ER. Since my son was very near to the same age of her daughter at the time of her fall, I took this story as a very timely warning to focus on the important things.

All in all it was a great, though tiring day. Now that we have a baby a day like this is longer than ever before. I need to bring extra bottles for pumping during the day. I need to lug my laptop and bottles of precious milk to Happy Hour, and the Library, then back on the train home. (What must the security guard at the Library thought of me?!)

By the time I got home I was so exhausted I felt nauseous. But, as Mika says in her book, it’s about knowing who you are and honoring your voice. All the things I did on that day were things that made me happy, peaceful, joyful, successful and fulfilled. Yes, I was exhausted, but exhaustion is a small (temporary) price to pay. I'm confident Mika would say the same, as she states in her book - running on autopilot is ok from time to time, but living that way for an extended period of time makes us numb and removed from our own lives (I paraphrased a bit). So one exhausting day for a sense of accomplishment was well worth it.

Check out the book if you are interested!

Difficult day working from home

or
I hate my dogs

So today was not the best day, though certainly not the worst day either.

I couldn't fall asleep until about 12, then woke up at 3 am thinking it was time to be up.
My son was up a few times in the night, still working through his messed up sleep from our trip.

I didn't wake up this morning early enough to work out before my son wanted to nurse.

The dog ate my chapstick.

My son had a new-to-solid-food poop so big I had to leave him strapped, diaperless, to the changing table while I frantically searched for more wipes.

Then the dog ate the container I'd been keeping the wipes in.

I had a conference call at 1 today, so my husband took our son to his office with him (one of the many, many perks of working for family). We were in full compliance with my work-from-home agreement, so I was feeling like we were managing to keep all our ducks in a row, plates twirling, and balls in the air. (I haven't had much sleep, forgive me...)

I can't leave the dogs in the yard since our newest dog (also the one who eats chapstick and wipes container) is also becoming a world champ fence jumper. So I had the dogs in the house, hid all the toys the fight over and settled in for my conference call.

And then...

in the middle of the conference call...

with my new boss....

the dogs found one of the bones I didn't locate...

and went ape-s**t.

Right under my feet.

I apologized, muted my phone, hid from the dogs in the staircase.

Unmuted myself.

Got followed by the dogs.

Hid in the bedroom.

Silently cursed the dogs whining and scratching at the bedroom door.

Tried really hard to sound cool, collected, and professional.

After the call, I emailed everyone on the call, luckily just internal staff, and apologized for my dogs.

The new boss has not replied yet.

Argh.

My son continued to be alternately charming and screaming insanely at me the rest of the afternoon, still not able to get back into his nap routine. He'd fall asleep for 10 minutes and wake up screaming bloody murder.

So, I'm relieved the day is over.

Hope your day was better than mine, and tomorrow's better than today!

Facing Fears and Learning to Not Teach my Kids to be Fearful.

Driving in the city scares me. Driving during rush hour scares me. Driving in the snow scares me. Driving in new places scares me.
And yet, today I did all of these things. My darling brother watched our dogs while we were away for our weekend in the Pocono's and had too much stuff to take the train back to his place in the city. So I did what any good big sister would do and volunteered to drive him back.

My default reaction to situations (and there are many) that scare me or make me uncomfortable is to not do it. I'm a big fan of the "you don't have to do anything you don't want to do" sort of advice when it comes to things outside my comfort zone. I am amazed, confused and overwhelmed by people who run headlong into new things.

Article on author of "Mommy Doesn't Drink Here Anymore"

I just returned from a lovely weekend away in the Pocono's with my husband's family. It was a weekend filled to the gills of quality time with family, WAY too much food (especially cookies as those of you who were there can attest too), a little too little sleep, and lots of laughs.

I spent some time sitting on the couch in front of the fire, reading some Good Housekeeping magazines that my mother-in-law brought along. One of the articles told the story of Rachael Brownell, a mother of 3 daughters who used her daily glass of wine to cope with her daily trials. After a scare with one of her daughters playing in the backyard she started to question her use of alcohol and whether or not she had a "problem". She did, in my mind, some very smart and courageous things, that to her probably felt anything but smart and courageous.

Philadelphia beats snow records...Mommy's pooped after 4 days stuck in the house

So I've been stuck in the house since Monday (I think, what day is it now?) and we've been getting ready for a weekend away and I'm pooped!

Luckily my darling husband did all the shoveling for the feet of snow that was dumped on us in the past week or so. I've been stuck inside with the baby, dogs, and cat. Unfortunately one of our dogs has developed wanderlust and has jumped right over the wall of our yard a few times recently. So I can't even let the dogs out to burn off some steam without standing at the door watchingthem to whole time. And packing for even a weekend away with a 5 month old is a gargantuan task...

So that's what I've been up too...

Now that the weekend away is in sight and most of the preparation is completed, I am looking forward to it! We'll be away for the weekend with my husband's family, probably eat way too much, nap just enough (there's no such thing as napping too much) and hopefully spend some quality time with my son and his Daddy.

Working from home means no snow days!

So we're getting ready for another 12 - 18" of snow in the Philadelphia area.

Many of my friends and co-workers are secretlly (or not so secretly) hoping like small schoolchildren that Wednesday or Thursday (or both!!!) will end up being snow days. This is one of the very few downsides to working from home - I can not in good conscience not work. Since my commute is merely to my kitchen table or desk (depending on how I feel) I can't really not work on acount of the snow.

Warning - oversharing follows! Nursing difficulties

So I'm suffering what is commonly referred to as a "drop in production". Without going into the gory details (or maybe I already have?), I'm not making enough milk for my son. AHHHHHH! As if the pressures of being a working mom weren't enough, now I'm not making enough FOOD for my infant! AHHHHH!

Packing for a weekend away with baby

This coming weekend, President's weekend, my husband's extended family goes away to the Pocono's. There are probably a total of 50 - 60 of us in 4-5 houses throughout the area. Some people ski, lots of people don't, we bring lots of food, games for the kids and generally have a great time. (Not always relaxing,  but a great time anyway!)

Last year when we went I was pregnant, so aside from extra snacks for me (I was starving every minute of the first trimester), we didn't have to do anything extra to get away.

Now that we travel with our little one (who will be nearly 6 months) the amount of stuff to bring is staggering!

Diapers and wipes for a full weekend, Pack 'n Play for him to sleep in, Booster seat for him to eat in, Excer-saucer for him to bounce in, baby food, formula, breast pump, bottles, bowls, spoons, clothes, sheets, blankets, pacifiers, books, toys, and on and on.

So there's a part of me that always asks "Is this worth it?"

But once the family who hasn't met him yet gets to playing with him, and I see his fascination with all the new things he'll be seeing, and how excited all his cousin's are to spend time with him, I know its all worthwhile!

Off to clean and pack!

starting to feed baby bananas!

The forecast is calling for 8 - 12" of snow in the Philadelphia and surrounding areas today, if you can believe that!

So me, hubby, baby, 2 puppies and kitty are holed up in the house for a long weekend. We got a supply of 1st foods from Gerber and are joining the world of bananas this weekend. My son absolutely LOVES his rice cereal, and I'm sure he'll love all the new flavors that fruits and vegetables will open up to him. We're using Gerber 1st foods, so I logged onto the Gerber site, just to see if there was anything new to learn, and I have to say, I was very impressed!

Maintaining my work from home schedule

Where did the week go? I can't believe I haven't posted since Sunday - many apologies!

So here we are, one day left in the week, hooray!

Today was a great day for me. Not only was it a work-out-of-the-house day, I went to our Division office near Harrisburg and met with my new permanent supervisor. I was a bit nervous because it has been 3 months since I returned to work from my maternity leave , and it was time to evaluate my work from home schedule.