This week we enjoyed some family time before I go back to work TONIGHT. I’m so sad that I won’t be with Ari all the time anymore, and so worried about how I’ll find time to pump at work. I know I’ll constantly feel like I need to sacrifice taking care of Ari and myself to keep my patients safe and comfortable, like when I was pregnant and not taking breaks or eating, and I felt so guilty all the time. But I’m also hoping that I’ll have more energy to get through the night and complete tasks efficiently now that I’m not pregnant.

It’s been easier to put Ari down for naps in his crib or bassinet lately. I lay him on his side (it’s a compromise between back and front!) with a WubbaNub pacifier toy tucked between his arms and he sucks for a minute and then goes to sleep. A. has been able to get him to sleep at night in the bassinet and he’s slept up to five hours in there. It’s taken me a while to decide I’m okay with not laying him down on his back – he just will NOT go to sleep on his back! On his side, I can rub his back while he falls asleep, and he can cuddle his WubbaNub. He can lift his head and upper body really well on his tummy, so I’m not worried that he’s going to roll that way and suffocate. I’ve been told it might be easier for him to sleep on his back if we swaddled him, but he can roll himself over in a swaddle and then I’d be worried he wouldn’t be able free his hands to hold his head up.

Here are some pictures from this past week, and Ari this morning (and napping right now):