Back to Work

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April 30, 2013 by Gina

I’ve been back to work full-time for three weeks now.  Brian has been home with the boys and we’ve already established a new “normal” for our family in just three short weeks.  Surprisingly, this transition and flip-flop in our household has gone really well!  Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised – I used to work full-time and it wasn’t that long ago (but I didn’t have children at home) and my husband has been the primary caretaker often enough to know the drill.  But still…this is a big change for our family and I just thought it would be “bumpier”.

I leave for work every morning and the boys barely say goodbye as I pack my lunch, breast pump, laptop, iPad, two phones and other stuff in the car.  They have hardly seemed to notice that mom and dad have done a major switch-a-roo on their caregiving.

There have been more adjustments for Brian and I than it seems for the kids.  I have had to pump instead of breastfeeding.  It’s hard to find the time and my milk supply has definitely gone down.  Several women I work with also have infants so we’ve found common ground in our pumping at work!  I have been adjusting to the long and tedious time spent in traffic during my commute (I live about 25 miles from the office).  I’ve also eaten out more in the last three weeks than I have in the past four years as a stay-at-home-mom!  It’s odd to go from never having a warm meal to having people wait on me!

Brian is doing a great as a stay-at-home-dad!  All three children are still alive!  All joking aside, dinners are on the table, laundry is done and the kids are happy as can be.  He said he feels really good about the transition and is enjoying being with the boys.  Unfortunately our middle son, Getty, has been sick the entire time – ear infection, hand, foot and mouth and then a stomach virus.  We actually ALL had the stomach virus this week.  It was a bloodbath at our house – vomiting and diarrhea – it was BAD!  Brian took all three boys to the doctor and has managed a household of sick boys in this new role.

I’m enjoying my new career and feel like my new company is a good fit – something you never really know until you’re with the company.  I’m looking forward to my future in the company and success in my sales role.  I feel good about my career and also about my skill level – something I was worried about coming back to work.  It helps tremendously that my husband is home with our boys.  I get text messages and phone calls updating me on their day and that makes working so much easier.  I do miss seeing them all the time, but I also am enjoying the freedom and autonomy of doing something outside the home.  I’m sure I’ll have challenges as we move forward in this transition but I’m so happy it’s gone as well as it has!