6 weeks and back to work

On Monday, I will return to work and Winifred will start daycare. We are a little torn over this. When Adelaide was born Ian and I both took 3 months off, which was a little easier to do since she was born in the summer and that worked well with our academic schedules. An autumn birthday was much trickier. Ian only took about a week off and I am only taking six. I could have taken a few more days, but I didn't want to exhaust my vacation and sick time with cold and flu season just around the corner. With two kids in daycare, we are bound to need as much accrued sick leave as possible.

And she is just now getting to the really cute phase of infancy. At five weeks she is just starting to smile at us and is finally OK being on her floor mat without crying the moment I put her down. I spent five weeks wearing her all the time, which was great for our bonding, but man, my back was aching. So I have reservations putting her into daycare so soon. Should I have just taken unpaid leave and had more time with her? Maybe, but I can't afford the insurance premiums for 3. Nor can we go without my paycheck. So, we will carry the guilt of not being able to treat our daughters equally. Adelaide got 3 months of both parents, Wini got one week of both parents and 5 weeks of me. Some is better than none. Right?

Winifred's 6 week check-up is next Wednesday. She has definitely gained weight and is eating like a champ. Winifred is already wearing 3 month sizes and is almost out of some of those. Which means we are able to use more of Adelaide's clothing, even though they were born in opposite seasons! Score!