Welcome Home!

John is most likely returning to work next week, so I'll get to phase back into being at home most days with the kids. (First I need to find a wonderful person to job share with, so send me resumes! It's a great flexible part-time office assistant job for a wonderful boss - a great find for someone with kids in school because it could be flexible around school hours. Tell your friends!)

Anyhow, some things have changed a bit since I was last spending weekdays at home. John's been doing an amazing job with the kids, but he does do things a bit differently. Here's what my children have learned:

(1) Meals are much tastier if they're had on the couch. They also apparently are much yummier if they're eaten directly out of Daddy's bowl. John tends to eat at the couch. Maybe because we have a tiny table with one chair taken over by Sara's high chair. Maybe because said table ends up being a dumping spot for clutter. I fixed myself lunch the other day while Sara watched closely, repeating "num num num" over & over. When I was done, she headed into the living room and patted the couch for me to hurry up.

(2) There are other ways to put a baby to sleep. I typically nurse Sara to sleep. John does not have the same, um, equipment as I do, and still Sara manages to get in a nap every day. Often even longer naps in her crib than she did on Mommy's lap. Maybe I'll have to give that a try, too - and actually have a few minutes to myself each day!

(3) Shoes now go on in the morning before cartoons come on. Due to a last-minute hunt for shoes and a coat that hadn't been forgotten in his cubby at school, the bus passed our home for the second (and final) time with no Liam aboard. Daddy had to hike to school with both kids, in the rain, because Mommy had the van (and car seats) at work. So John's implemented a new rule.

(4) Cloth diapers don't need to be worn EVERY day. Sara was wearing cloth diapers almost exclusively while I was home. We've bought two packages of disposable diapers in the last two months while John's been home. John has an active gag reflex, so I'm thrilled he's willing to change diapers at all.

(5) Matching is a relative term. John's been allowing Liam to dress himself in the morning. John steers him out of things that clearly clash, but John is also mostly colorblind. When Liam was in preschool, they encouraged us to let the kids pick out their own clothes to encourage independence. I hope Liam's kindergarten teacher is as understanding. Most of Sara's clothes are pink anyhow, so she generally matches. Or at least the clothes are clean.

(6) It's okay to prefer Daddy sometimes. Before I started working full-time, Sara had a very strong preference for Mommy. She would rarely choose to go to Daddy when I was around. I'm so touched to see her waddling down the hall after Daddy these days.

It's been a mixed blessing for John to be out of work for two months. He did an amazing job with the kids, got a peek into my life, and got lots of cuddle time with the kids. I got to wear clothes without baby food on them, talk to grown-ups all day, and miss my kids. I'm looking forward to more pajama days at home in my near future.