5 Months

Emma turned 5 months old on Friday.  We were at the park over the weekend and I found myself stumbling when one of the other moms asked me how old she is, "she's 3 months... I mean 4, I mean, gosh is she 5 months already?"  

She's still my happy girl and loves to laugh, suck on her hands, and her bottom two front teeth just broke through.  We just started sleep training this past week and put her to bed without her swaddle, while she's still awake, and let her fuss/cry it out awhile before we go back in and soothe her.  Every night has been getting easier and she's falling asleep faster.  She still wakes up a few times in the middle of the night, once to feed and the other times because she has lost her pacifier, but I sure am hoping she'll be sleeping through the night soon.

Here's my little munchkin.

In other news, Christmas has landed at the Coler-Dark residence.  More pictures and updates to come!

Back to Work

my "office"

I have been back at work for a month now and it's been a major adjustment.   I was hoping to come back to work and ease back into it slowly, getting my feet wet (and my brain working again) picking up smaller projects and helping out where needed.  Usually the holiday season is a slower time for our business, but while I was out on maternity leave, they started a major initiative, and they needed someone to manage it.  I went from managing regional projects within North America to managing a global program overnight, and although I've always been up for a challenge, it's not coming as easy to me as I'd like. I've been having to adjust my hours to have more overlap with our UK office,  working at night after the kids go to bed to stay afloat, and traveling much more than I'd like. It definitely wasn't what I was expecting, but that's how life goes - throwing curve balls from time to time to keep you on your toes.

The positives of being back at work are definitely there too though.  I love my team. I love the feeling of accomplishment after getting through a major milestone or obstacle, and I love feeling that I am growing and developing new skills and expertise. It also helps that I get to work from home for the most part and it's so nice to be able to get a load of laundry done, go grocery shopping on my lunch or have my morning cup of coffee in silence after I get home from dropping the kids off at daycare.

I miss my kids dearly, but know that by me having a fulfilling career it makes me a better mom and appreciate the time I have with Luke and Em that much more.  It's going to take awhile to really feel back to normal again but having been through this before, I know I'll get there.