Welcome back Aunt Flo (I didn't miss you)

In everyone's life, there are high days and low days. As I mom, I've had so many of both in the past 9 months. I will never forget the day when I fit back into my pre-pregnancy jeans (I danced around the house!!!) or the one last week when my period came back (even though I haven't cut back on nursing/pumping). I can't complain though, because
I actually took a pregnancy test the week before. I'll admit that I can be a bit of a hypochondriac - I thought our "not-exactly-protected-sex" may have led to a possible sibling for Paolo. I'm definitely not ready for that yet. I don't want to end up like one of those women on that reality show who go to the doctor for stomach cramps and find out they're in labor. "But doctor, I thought my lack of periods and extreme weight gain over the past 9 months was due to my depression!" Sheesh.

Last week Paolo went for his 9 month checkup with the pediatrician and what I thought was just a lingering cold had developed into a slight ear infection. She prescribed some antibiotics and we were on our way. 4 days later, he seemed to be running a fever so we took him to the urgent care clinic. I guess the medicine wasn't working because
that doc prescribed a different amoxicillin with a higher dose. It was so scary to see our little boy so hot, fussy and inconsolable. The next day was Monday and I stayed home from work to make sure he was ok and administer baby Tylenol and Motrin as needed. By the afternoon he was back to his smiling self and we walked to the park.
I pushed him on the swing and even went down the slide with him twice, though he didn't seem to notice.

A few days later, I noticed there were some spots on his chest and tummy as I was changing him in the morning. Paul and I thought maybe he just had a reaction to something and decided to send him to daycare anyway. Of course, about 30 minutes after I got to work, I got a call. Did I notice the spots on my son? Yes, I had, and I felt like such a bad mother for sending my kid to school. I came to pick him up and it had gotten worse. He even had the tiny spots on his toes! :( When I called the nurse line and told them about the progression of symptoms, she said it sounded like roseola. Apparently it's very common for kids under 3. Of course, I'd never heard of it before, but every parent I talked to afterward said "oh yeah, a lot of kids get that." It's a virus, and we had to wait for it to go away on it's own. We actually had a nice day off together, playing and running errands.

Missing the time off work was crazy, since the new girl they hired is still very new. My boss asked me to check phone messages from home the first day and I tried to help by returning calls with a pouty baby in the background. I felt so stressed, although I'm glad I stayed with him til he felt better. It makes me admire stay at home moms even more, and I have to confess I was happy to go back to work after it was all over. I just didn't know how to keep him entertained all day, especially since he hardly napped at all. I don't have the energy necessary to handle him all day every day. I guess what I'm saying is that I'm grateful to have such an amazing full-time daycare. Don't get me wrong - I still feel that I have 2 jobs: the one I get paid for and being a mom. My role as a mother will always come first, so even though I knew I would be buried in work for taking the time off, I had to do what was best for my baby.

Paul has been so stressed at work lately. I know that he holds most of it back (unlike me, who has to tell him about every little thing in my day,) but I am worried they are stretching him too thin. Tonight he finally confided to me how much pressure he is under, and why that's caused him to bring work home. I don't mind, I just want him to be happy. Seriously! I know a lot of wives would say that and not mean it, but I remember when we got our first apartment and we ate dinner off of a box before we even bought a table. We don't need much to get by, just enough to pay our bills. Next weekend is Labor Day, and we just booked two nights at a hotel in San Clemente. I think we need time away without lap tops, blackberries or any one else. I hope it will just be a nice relaxing weekend for the 3 of us :)