Everybody's Working.

Elliot has become a pretty unpredictable and sometimes flat out bad napper. There are some days when he sleeps one hour the whole day, which certainly is not enough for an 8 1/2 mo. old. But it's not that we aren't trying-- there will be days where he shows all signs of going down, but then spends 30-45 minutes investigating his crib, moving all around, up on all fours, staring right into the lens of the video monitor. Actually, we are quite entertained by it all, but I'd prefer he naps. He goes from talking/cooing to himself, to crying, to just laying there sucking his thumb and kicking his legs. He just seems to be unable to let go, as if there's just too much to do.

He's working so hard at getting up on all fours, rocking back and forth, scooting backwards, that by the time bedtime rolls around, he's thoroughly exhausted and goes down quite easily at night lately.

The transition to work has been relatively smooth (am I safe to write that at this point? Three "real" days under my belt with Renee coming here...). It takes some planning and organization, which I do ok at as long as it's required. Pat takes the morning shift before Renee arrives, loving that time with Elliot. Renee takes in stride his grumpiness and stubbornness when they appear. She's doing great at reading his needs and adjusting when something is off schedule (like this morning when he was up at 5:30am instead of 7:30am!). It is very reassuring to see him snuggle with her, and even more wonderful to see him excited when I come in the door and he gives the snuggles to me! :) Truly, it relieves so much of my fretting at work to know that he is comfortable with her and is enjoying his day at home, doing what we've always done.

My day is so busy, I am surprised at how "ok" I've been during work... it's the drive home that's torture! So far, so good. I am sure at some point our organization and timing will run into bumps, but it's working well for now. I guess I might have more stress to report once those essays start piling up...