The end of an era

Also known as my maternity leave. I was blessed to be able to take 16 weeks off to bond with Brynn and it's been wonderful. We spent so many days sleeping in, going for long walks and occasionally strolling around Target. I'll admit I thought I was going to accomplish more during my leave such as sewing, house projects and gardening but there really isn't time for anything extra except taking care of your baby.
I went into the office last Friday to get myself settled and acclimated back into the work world. The day went well (for me at least..apparently Brynn put up a little fight!) and to be honest it hardly felt like I had been gone for almost 4 months! Luckily I have great co-workers who are really excited to have me back. Ask me again in a few months but right now I'm ready to go back to work, and even though it would be ideal to work part-time (with full benefits and no holidays/weekends of course!), full-time is the only option in this position. Luckily as a nurse I know I have other options if part-time is what we needed to do for our family later on.

It really helps to know that  Brynn will be well-taken care of by her dad on Fridays, my parents on Tuesdays and an in-home nanny the other 3 days with Kyle's parents on-call to help as needed. Having a nanny is a great option for us for many reasons:
1. It allows us to have part time care as many center day-cares require full time or essentially charge you the same price for part time as full time.
2. It means we don't have to get up pack her stuff and bring her anywhere. She gets to stay in a familiar environment with all the supplies she needs! Additionally we get to come straight home versus stopping by day care.
3. She gets one on one attention. This was huge for me. Center daycares require a 4 to 1 ratio for infant...which is like having quadruplets...crazy. I need to know her needs are being taking care of as quickly as possible.
4. She shouldn't get sick as much. Enough said.
Eventually we'll transition her to a daycare so she can interact with other children which I think is important, especially after one year. She's on a waiting list for a local spanish language immersion daycare which after touring I would  be more than comfortable sending her to once she can be in the toddler room (after 12 months).
Even though I'm sad to not have as much mommy and me time with Brynn I know I'll savor the time I do have with her after work and on weekends. I'm so lucky to be her mom. Her working mom.

Here's a collection of a few of our self portraits throughout my leave because no one else was around to take picture of us : )