Guest Blog - Back to work mom after having newborn.

Yeah!!  We have our first guest blogger from a new mommy who has recently gone back to work.  I love this blog because it does remind me of the time when I went back to work.  I haven't yet gotten to my stay-at-home blog yet, but I will let you know why that is in my blog....  Once again Thank you Maureen for sharing your story as it will help many others who struggle with the same thing to know they are not alone.  

Hello Fellow Mommies! This is going to be a bit of an indulgence for me because if there’s one thing I’m good at in life, it’s making myself feel like I’m not doing “good enough”. I was incredibly fortunate to end my initial return to work after 3 weeks due to a move. I recently returned to work full time at the end of September when my daughter was 8 months old. We are almost 2 months in and here’s a snapshot of our schedule and our adjustment.                         Night before-- thaw milk, prep bottles/meals, shower, put in some work time, pump either before bed or around 1am if I go to bed before 10:30.                         5/6ish-- Baby wakes up, nurse, start getting ready for the day                         6:45—Offer another nursing (I’m a little paranoid), get baby ready, finish getting ready                         7:15/7:30—Drop baby off at day care and go to work (aim to get to work around 7:30/7:45)                         9:30—pump                         12:30—multitask pump/lunch                         3:30—pump                         4:50—run out to beat traffic and pick baby up from day care                         5:15—nurse                         5:45—bath, jammies, hope to see Daddy                         6:20—last diaper change, nurse, hopefully asleep around 6:45/7                         I’m incredibly lucky to have a baby that has slept rather well from the get-go. I take full advantage of it and try to get some work done several nights after she goes to bed to help mitigate all of the pump breaks. The mother’s room at work is a 5 minute walk from my desk, so I build a little guilt into my day by worrying that I’m taking WAY too much time pumping. It turns into double the guilt because I’m not the greatest pumper so I get frustrated that everyone thinks I’m taking ridiculous breaks and it’s not even getting me that much. I’m so glad I got up every night while I was out of work so I could stockpile some milk. Clearly I could write an entire post about the trials and tribulations of balancing work and breastfeeding, so I’ll leave it at maintaining that relationship is constantly on my mind during the work day. It will be my biggest disappointment if returning to work disrupts that.                         Another way that becoming a working mother challenges me is that it forces me to get more done with less time. As it stands I am away from my daughter for 9-10 hours a day. That is 9-10 hours of giggles, smiles and first milestones that she is having with someone else. It makes me cry to think about it, and yet in the same breath I’m also worried about doing my best at work. To throw humility out the window for a moment, I have always been a top performer. I work hard, put in the time and sacrifice (d) for my job. It’s easy to do when you don’t have kids. Now, my first though when I badge in is when will I get to leave. I’m already leaving at the earliest possible time (and not counting those 3 ten-minute walks to the mother’s room!) and I’m starting to worry that people are on to me. In the early days when you are mostly training and flying under the radar no one notices if you are putting in the bare minimum. Now my responsibilities are adding up, my calendar is bursting at the seams, and all I can think about is getting out on time. I am so fortunate to be in a job that is incredibly flexible and allows us to work from home to finish tasks. Some nights it’s really hard to get that time in after baby goes to bed. Right now my goal is 3 nights a week and one weekend. Wish me luck!                         In parting, I’ll share my “quick tips” that help me stay on track, sane and organized as a working mom.                         • Get as much done as possible the night before. I’ve learned that the first half of the night is always a constant, but you can never rely on a set wake time from baby.                         • Actually get dressed as late as possible and have a replacement outfit on standby. Nothing derails the well-oiled day care express like a huge spit up on your dress clothes!                         • It’s ok to sleep if you need it. I have to fit in an extra pump session to help with the day care bottles. If I’m really tired, I’ll just go to bed at 8:30/9 and set an alarm.                         • Be open and transparent with your co-workers. My team knows that I leave a little early to beat traffic. But they also know that I get work done at home.                         • Throw in a late night every once in a while. I try to take a training class or attend a meeting that goes late a couple of times a month. That way I’m showing that I can be flexible if the need arises.                         Good Luck Mommies!  - Anonymous.