Reality

Shane went back to work on Sunday night. I was really glad that he was able to spend as much time with me as he did. I'm glad that he had the PTO to be able to do it. It was extremely helpful. Of course, with that comes reality...

It's much easier to take care of a newborn and an 18 month old when there are two adults around... especially if you are recovering from a c-section. I read some recommendations that kind of just made me laugh a little... "the mom will need time to recover. It is best if she can have a nap in the morning and a nap in the afternoon..." I guess if there is just one baby and no other kids this might be a feasible thing...

I have a much greater appreciation for women that have a bunch of kids all close together...and no help. I honestly don't know how they do it!

Things have been going pretty good though. For the most part anyway... My two older kids have been an abundance of help. I try not to take advantage of their helpfulness, and let them know how much I appreciate them and all they do. A little gratitude goes a long way!

Jeffrey has been improving. He hasn't been crying as much, and he hasn't been throwing as many tantrums either. You can tell that he is going through that toddler phase where he is trying to test the boundaries though. :) I think it's good to have kind of a routine. I've started putting him to bed when the older kids go to bed for school. I also, have gotten into a habit of starting the dishwasher. For some reason, it's soothing to him. Kind of like a white noise machine I guess. Works for me! Added bonus is that by the time Jeffrey is completely asleep the load/cycle is done and I don't have to listen to it all night long.

I admit that yesterday was a rough evening for me. I don't know if it was just everything coming down at once... the realization that I didn't have anything for dinner, and no easy way to make something... I guess the extra or lack of hormones could have something to do with it too. :) Chocolate was looking more and more appetizing!

So, today we made sure to go to the store and get some meals that are made, and just have to be heated up. Not extremely healthy, but still better than going a restaurant every night, which we wouldn't have been able to do anyway, and at least gives me some ability to continue to take it easy until I'm given the go ahead to do whatever I want.

Still, things have been going pretty well for the most part, and unlike after my other pregnancies I am still feeling pretty good emotion wise. At least now I know for sure what I am dealing with and how to deal with it if I start heading down the postpartum depression road. Haven't started there yet though, so here's to hoping!

While I am grateful that my c-section went as well as it did, I will be really glad when I am cleared to do everything I feel like doing. Occasionally I have to break the rules. There are times when Jeffrey has to be held, and the only way to do it is to pick him up (which I try to do as carefully as I can!). Other than that though, I try to do what has been recommended.

One of these days I will write a post that has nothing to do with pregnancy, babies, toddlers, or c-sections... it might be a while though! :)