Two (and a half) Months

Charlotte@Living Well on the Cheap  —  September 12, 2012 — 4 Comments

Somehow I neglected to snap a photo of Jack on the day he turned two months old-must have had something to do with the hurricane raging outside that day! Between Hurricane Isaac and our trip to Connecticut/New York I didn’t get around to taking his monthly photo until more than a week later, and here I am posting about it nearly a week after that. He’ll be 11 weeks old on Friday, can you believe it? This has been an amazing summer for us, and I think it’s kind of symbolic that he’ll turn 12 weeks old (the unofficial end of newbornhood) next week on the official last day of summer.

There were a few weeks there when being home all day with him was hard and I started to question whether this was what I really wanted to do, but somewhere along the way we seem to have hit our stride. This is by far the most rewarding job I’ve ever had. And I don’t mean to brag, but I think I’m pretty good at it. It’s more than just feeding, playing, and cleaning up poop all day, although those activities do occupy the bulk of my time. There’s lots of problem solving and critical thinking involved. I actually feel like I’m as intellectually challenged by this work as I was by any of my master’s-level positions. To be good at caring for someone who can’t use words and barely understands his wants and needs himself takes a fair amount of observation and deductive reasoning. I like that kind of thing, and I love this little man, so this is pretty much my dream job. If things change and I find myself feeling unhappy I’ll be back to work in a heartbeat because I think it’s more important for Jack to have a happy mama than a stay-home mama. But for now I’m happy to be employee of the month every month here at Casa de Tryforos.

That said, I am going to be working as a social worker one day per week starting next week. I got offered the job during a particularly stressful week at home and it seemed too good an opportunity to pass up. The money’s good, I’ll get a break from full-time parenting, and it’ll keep me from having a giant gap in my resume, all for just one day a week. But I’ll be honest. It took a few weeks for my background check and drug screen to go through and I secretly hoped they’d just forget about me. When they called this week to ask when I could start I kind of wanted to throw up. But I’m putting on my big girl pants (literally-I had to buy new pants for my post-baby body) and hiring a babysitter. I hope I won’t regret it.

ps see Jack’s one month picture here, and pictures of him only a week old here.

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Charlotte@Living Well on the Cheap

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4 responses to Two (and a half) Months

  1. Janet (Country Mouse) September 12, 2012 at 6:23 pm

    Congratulations! You have discovered what all good Moms know. Motherhood is challenging, interesting, rewarding, and a whole bunch of really hard work. That’s why you love it.

    Best wishes on the new job as well. One day a week is probably a good fit.

  2. Sounds like a perfect situation! So glad to hear how things are progressing.

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