Back To Reality

Today was my official first day back at work. I hated it. I spent most of last night staring at Avery and crying. I can't believe how hard it is to even think about leaving her after being with her almost 24-hours a day for the past twelve weeks. Lets be honest, I knew my maternity leave would have to end eventually, but I didn't want it to be so soon. On one hand, I feel a little guilty because my company allows up to six-months off for maternity leave and I only took three. On the other hand, I know I needed to get back to work because my company is laying off again sometime next year and my boss was let go while I was on maternity leave. I need to attempt to make some sort of positive impression on my new boss. Gotta love this economy and job market-it adds a whole new level of stress to life!

Luckily, I am able to somewhat ease back into things at work. This week, I will be home doing administrative work most of the week so I can see Avery anytime I want. I also have to work a conference at the Lake of the Ozarks on Friday and Saturday, but Luke and Avery are joining me so I won't have to spend the night away from them.

Luke and I are very fortunate to have such helpful moms. They decided to donate their time over the next few weeks to come to Columbia and take care of Avery so she doesn't have to go to "school" right away. (I like to call Avery's daycare her school because it makes me feel better about having to take her.) Avery loves spending time with her grandmothers and Luke and I really appreciate the extra help. I know it will make my transition back to work a little easier.
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Of course Avery is growing and changing more and more everyday. She is finally big enough to fit into her BOB stroller. We call it her "big girl" stroller. Doesn't she look cute?

Our Little Tiger

Recap

Over the past month, the Musselman family has been VERY busy! In mid-August, we took a big road trip to MN for a Gordon family wedding. The wedding and bride (Jenna) were beautiful and the trip as a whole was a lot of fun. We were able to see some good friends, take Avery to the Mall of America and simply enjoy the state I used to call home. Unfortunately, we didn't take many pictures. I take pictures ALL the time, but tend to forget to take them when we are with other people.

The weekend after our trip to MN, Luke's sister, Coby, got married. This was Avery's first wedding. (My friend's mom, Martha Aas, graciously offered to babysit Avery while Luke and I attended the wedding in MN.) Sadly, Miss. Avery decided that she was not interested in watching Aunt Coby get married. Instead, I had to walk up and down the stairs with her the entire ceremony. Coby looked beautiful and she and Mike seemed so much in love. We are truly happy for them.

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Yesterday, Avery officially grew out of her newborn diapers. I finally had to switch her to level 1 diapers because the diapers would leak and she kept peeing on me whenever I fed her. Of course the new diapers are huge on her, but I guess she'll grow into them. Avery has also grown out of most of her newborn clothes. While I realize we got a lot more time out of them than most people, it was still a little sad. I remember when the newborn clothes swallowed her and Luke and I would hold up the 0-3 month clothes thinking they were so big!

Avery and I are now staying at my parents' house in St. Louis while they are on vacation in Aruba. In total, they will be gone just under two weeks. It has been a busy and stressful week with five cats (I brought our cat to join their four), a dog, a 26 year-old brother and my precious baby girl. The most important thing I will take away from this experience is the decision that we will NEVER get a dog. I think Avery will just have to be happy with a cat, fish or a stuffed animal.
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