*I've had a few people ask how my first week as a stay-at-home Mom is going. And in short its awesome!!
Chapter 3.
At least thats what it seems.
To recap, chapter 1 was having Antonio and being able to stay home with him for 9 months before returning to work. I am incredibly grateful for that. Sure, all he mostly did was eat, poop/pee, sleep and cry but that infant time is/was so precious and you never get that back.
Chapter 2 was going back to work and putting him in daycare. We were lucky enough to find good daycares, yes we had to change daycares 3 times for different reasons for him. Each one, except maybe the last, (it was good but was glad to not have him there long) was a good fit for where he was in age. The first one, he was at from 9 months to about 18 months so he was mainly just crawling around and exploring; it was a good fit and the other kids there were similar in age. The second one, he was about 18 months to just this summer and was much more structured and school like. Lots of learning play with circle time where they did calendar, the weather and reading. It was perfect for him getting him prepped for school. I couldn't have imagined a better place for him to be at for that part of his life. The 3rd and most recent place, wasn't bad just not as good as the other two places. There was a LOT of tv time. Antonio came home talking about things he wanted that he'd seen on tv there. We think there was more attention to the smaller kids, which is good and needed but, then the older kids were free to do whatever, whenever including tv watching, all the time.
Then onto chapter 3, the present.
As you all know, as of August 28th I became a SAHM. After the week with Antonio I am really wishing we could have done this earlier but home refinancing and other things kept us from doing that. I am just grateful for the week and a half with him before school starts. I feel like I am already more "present" in his life. There's also been a couple times where he's told me to, "slow down, don't be in a hurry" because, "the faster we go the less time I get to spend with you and I like spending time with you". I'm not sure how accurate that is or where he got that but I got the hint both times. I'm trying to learn to take my time, slow down and "smell the flowers". I don't have "go to work" so theres minimal rush to get things done. :) That part is great.
Going forward, I will be first and foremost Antonio's Mama. I can't wait to be there at the bus stop after school to hear about his day. I'm also looking forward to being a volunteer in Antonio's class this year, hoping to on a regular basis. We'll have to find a good routine for after school as far as homework, downtime and playtime. I am sure we'll have to try a few different things before we find the right one for both us.
While he is at school there are so many things I have put on my own "honey-do" list. Everything from cleaning, to organizing, to throwing clutter out, to just basics like getting new pictures in our frames on the walls. I also hope to find time to refocus on me. Finding time to get back into an exercise routine, finding something(s) to do in my community that I like and makes me feel good. Albert's schedule will change (weekends off again) starting the end of this month which will also mean we will get more time as a family and that he and I will get more time together too!
There will be some adjustments in the coming weeks as far as routine, expectations, money spending and just plain old spending time together, because let's be honest, we were rarely spending time as a whole family and now suddenly having a lot more time together may take an adjustment! :) I'm already seeing my anxiety levels stay lower too. I'm sure I will see them rise again next week leading up to the start of school but thats expected. :)
I am looking forward to finding our groove together and spending more time together!
