Day One - Check!

Five a.m. rise and shine to warm showers and a bit of quiet time with the wee one. A 50's style housewife dress laced with color to exude confidence, togetherness, sunniness and a touch of "I kind of wish I were still at home." A onesie for Squeak that read "New In Town" just in case the rest of the babies didn't know. An unexpected smoother morning than anticipated...perhaps due to my incessant planning and line item agenda with expectations and roles. Lots of tears at the handoff. A meltdown for the Little Dude for Daddy who dropped him an hour earlier into an abyss of unknown that Skittles for breakfast couldn't even help. A drive to work with hard core rap to numb the pain. Arrival to the office to the most thoughtful team a gal could ask for. Hugs, questions, support, mommy gifts, a remembered computer password and only 1600 emails. A mostly productive afternoon and a quick lunch with dear friends. A transitional schedule for a week that meant an early pickup. Baby in one piece despite only sleeping five minutes (swaddle cold turkey time) and had a few smiles and play left in him for Mommy. Dinner rich with humor with the family and extra snuggles with Little Dude as he dozed off. Momma Strong workout and off to bed.

I'd say day one was a quasi success, wouldn't you?

Thank you to the incredible women I work with who know that streamers, Starbursts, empty frames ready to be filled with love and words of encouragement make coming back easier. And to my dear friends and family for their thoughtful emails, texts, calls and love. I don't know what I did to deserve you, but I'm going to continue to be grateful with a whole heart.

Day one - check!