Surviving the Cycle . . .

I returned to work yesterday after being gone for a total of 12 weeks.  2 of the 12 weeks were during Christmas break.  Over all my day went well and more importantly, so did Baby M’s day. 

I’m not sure what is more exhausting, getting up at 4:30 and working all day without a nap or physically packing and hauling all of the ‘stuff’!

I began my back to work preparation on Saturday.  I went to work to ‘tidy’ up a bit and look over lesson plans.  In my mind I assumed that I would need to put a few things back in their correct places and pick up a little here and there.  I set a personal time frame of about 3 hours to take care of business. 

Sadly, I spent 6 hours because there was more cleanup to be done than I anticipated.  I was extremely disappointed with the condition my classroom was left in.  It appeared as if The Tasmanian Devil stepped in during my leave.  Needless to say, I missed out on family time and left me feeling even more upset.

On Sunday I attempted to pack up items that both Baby M and I would need to survive on Monday.  Last week Baby M and I took a load (diapers, wipes, extra clothes, blankets, burp rags, etc.) to the babysitters house when we went to visit.  I packed bottles, milk, toys, and the portable swing for her to take on Monday.

For myself I packed items to pump with (bottles, milk bags, a cooler with a cold pack, a blanket to cover with, the pump its self), a lunch, water, and my school bag.  When all was said and done, there were a total of 6 bags between us!

Brent and I took Baby M to the babysitter together because it was her first day.  I hustled into work as fast as I could.  After unpacking things I locked my door, covered the window on the door, and pumped as I checked my morning email.  I pumped again 2 more times throughout the day.

At 5:00 I packed up all 5 of my bags and headed to pick up Baby M at the sitters along with B and G (they attend Kindergarten and preschool in the same building).

I arrived home a little after 6:00.  Brent kissed me goodbye (it was like we were 2 ships passing in the night) as he headed out the door to a Little League meeting for B.    Brent had dinner made (how awesome is that?!) so all I had to do was warm it up after unloading the junk and putting it away.

Brent was back home around 7:30.  Just in time to read stories and put the boys to bed.  After tucking them in for the night I hopped in the shower, fed Baby M, and went to bed.

I woke up at 4:30 only to begin the cycle again.  I just wish there were some way to make the day longer.  I feel as if more time was wrapped up in preparation rather than with my family.

I know there is no simple solution to fix this.  It’s just a new routine that I’m going to have to get accustom to.  Unfortunately, time is the only fix for this situation.  I only wish I weren’t so impatient.