As some may know, my family welcomed our new addition, Camille, at the end of August. She came in like a freight train and over two weeks early at that! My husband only had a few weeks off work to be with us before he had to return to California, so we had a little “babycation” where we didn’t do much of anything besides hang out with our kids. I also took a break from Eli’s therapy schedule during this time. Admittedly, mainly because it was hard remembering an appointment after being up all night with a newborn; but also, so he could enjoy every moment he could with both parents together.
Despite my fears, Eli is actually adjusting quite well to being a big brother. Throughout my pregnancy, I kept Eli involved as much as possible. He went to a few doctor visits and an ultrasound; he really enjoyed listening to her heartbeat. I always made sure to reference the baby as much as possible so he could get used to the idea. I’m sure it also helped that my sister and cousin both have had babies in the past six months. Eli has spent quite a bit of time with them and has gotten used to being around little babies.
He has always had a tough time being told no. Anything that wasn’t an immediate yes was taken as a no and he would run away crying. So you can imagine what I was expecting the first time I told him he had to wait because I was feeding the baby. I thought for sure he would run away screaming and slam a door like he’s done in the past. Instead, what did he do? He said “ok!” and walked back to where ever he needed the help and waited for me to come help him.
It was hard making the adjustment from one child to two. Now that my husband is gone and it’s just me with two kids, I’m a little in over my head. Staying up all night with your first kid was hard enough, but at least you got to take naps during the day when the baby napped. This time around I have a hyperactive 4 year old who I need to take care of bright and early. Last night baby didn’t go to bed until 6:30am but guess who woke up at 8:30? Since becoming a big brother Eli has becoming very understanding and patient, but he’s still loud as hell. I’ve been trying to lay down as much as possible today but between cleaning and fixing bottles and Eli’s ever so persistent “mommy come look!” I didn’t get much sleep in.
Babycation is officially over. Time to dust off my planner and dry erase calendar because Eli starts back up with his therapy next week in addition to his regular school days. I’ve spent too many days floating around being lazy with my kids. It’s time to get everyone back on a routine. We have a couple more months in Michigan before we head back to San Diego so we need to start utilizing all of our remaining time.
Mastering Motherhood 