Back to Business

Graham's First Day!

Today concludes the last day of my first week back to work. I have to say that things went better than I had expected. Everyone tells you how terrible and awful it is going back to work after having a baby. Being horrified that gloom and doom would be my reality actually helped make it easier when it turned out to not be so bad. Still, I do not feel like we are anywhere close to being in a routine again.

Monday was a holiday so I (selfishly) kept my baby home with me for one last day. We had family visiting over the weekend which was wonderful but meant he was being loved on and held by everyone but momma. I squeezed in as many cuddles as I could.

Aaron and I have agreed that life with a kid only holds you back as much as you allow. This meant that we went to small group that evening, despite having not yet prepared everything for the big day to come. I'm glad we went. I don't think that looking back on my life I will regret having spent our time doing adult things with our kids in tow. I don't want my children to become an excuse to not participate in everyday life, though I'm sure there will be those times. Anyway, we're making an effort to stay involved.

On Tuesday morning, as we packed up our little bug with his "school supplies," I prayed Philippians 4:6-7 in my head over and over again. God was going to give me a peace beyond understanding. His peace. Aaron and I dropped him off together and chat with his caregiver for a bit. I gave my baby an overwhelming number of kisses and hugs and handed him over. I got back in the car, had a few tears, and felt okay by the time we were on the highway. I didn't even call during the day to check on him!

I will say that having a daycare that we are 100% comfortable with does wonders for a worried soul. I know he is being cared for by ladies who want to teach him about Jesus and love on him. And seriously, who wouldn't want to play here?

 The work day passed fairly quickly. Late that afternoon my sweet husband needed an emergency root canal and tooth extraction. This meant that we picked up our boy later than originally planned and made it home just in time for him to sleep through our snuggle time. 

Day two was not so easy. With the rough evening we had before, I had little time to get things prepped ahead of time. I had been rushed to get ready and failed to spend a few moments to cuddle with him in the morning. So when I dropped him off, by myself this time, it was harder to leave and I was obviously upset. Of course that would be right when the other mommies are coming to drop off their kiddos. "It gets easier..."

So I've been told.

They emailed me pictures of him during lunch that day. It was a nice little blessing.

Thursday I had to get back to business by attending a client dinner that evening. Not exactly what a new mom wants to have to do her first week back at work. Still, I knew it was important for me to stay visible amongst the company leadership. Plus it is always nice to have a good steak on the company dime. ;)

It's Friday now and I'm sure you can imagine how excited I am to have the weekend. Going from spending 18 waking hours a day enjoying my bug to 6 is... well... sad. But I know that God has me where I am right now for a purpose. Perhaps He can use me more productively in the workforce than on my couch. I just need to keep reminding myself of that and patiently endure this season of my life, trusting Him to use it to teach me about His love. Comfort never bore spiritual growth in the way that struggle does. And through it I lean on God's promises. Trusting that He is a faithful God who wants to give good gifts to His children, I ask for patience, peace, and perhaps a new circumstance.

Chapter Nine

 I'm terribly ashamed to say that this will be my first blog post in nearly a year. Well, here's to starting over... or to a new chapter, rather. Let me catch you up on the happenings of the last year.

Chapter 1: Sold

We bought a house back in September of last year. Home ownership has been wonderful. Aaron has a long honey-do list of projects. Currently he's in the process of building a built-in desk/wardrobe/bookshelf for our study. And now that the construction outside of our home has resulted in new neighbors, we've spent the last year getting to know the many fantastic families around us. This was such an answered prayer.

Chapter 2: Draper & Dillon

Our tiny little twins are not so tiny anymore. These dogs are crazy! I'm so thankful that they have each other to play with. Our pups have completely destroyed our backyard though - to include building a 'friendship tunnel' to share toys with the dogs next door. Did I mention how thankful I am that we have nice and forgiving neighbors??

Chapter 3: Pabst

In December, we found out we had a little one on the way! My sisters, who were of course ecstatic, took no less than two days to come home from the bookstore with a... helpful book on unique baby names. And since we decided not to find out the gender, the baby's odd little nickname stuck.

Chapter 4: Wolf Creek, CO

We spent Spring Break snowboarding in Colorado. Yes, I went snowboarding at 4 months pregnant. Yes, I was still awesome. Yes, it is entirely possible that my cute preggo self got overly dehydrated and had to get IV fluids at the ER. Yes, I subsequently (and repeatedly) kicked everyone's butt at Monopoly Deal while resting in the lodge.

Chapter 5: Reading Railroad

Work has been going great for both Aaron and myself. After a bit of a rocky season with several changes in management at Aaron's job, we were blessed by a great promotion for him. My job afforded me the opportunity to begin working with our international offices in Reading, UK. I spent a very cold and rainy week in London! While there, I received a (very unexpected) promotion, as well! God has been so good to us through our careers.

Chapter 6: Love

Our sweet sister (via Aaron) was married this year.
We are so excited to have Travis and his son in our family! 

We joined a young-married couples small group with our church. It's a breath of fresh air to have quality friends who are in the same life stage as we are. 

Chapter 7: Showered

With the impending arrival of Baby Pabst, our friends and family completely, absolutely, and staggeringly overwhelmed us with love and gifts for our new little family. It's amazing that so many people love a kiddo they've never met because they love us. Seriously... I cannot say THANK YOU enough. I hope we are able to bless people like that, too.

\Chapter 8: Birthday

 And then it happened... a beautiful little boy was born on my 24th birthday! Weighing 7 pounds 5 ounces at 20 1/4 inches long, our sweet baby Graham entered the world at 4:14 pm on August 4th, 2013.

Becoming parents has brought so much love into our world, and not just love for our son but for each other. God has been so good to us this past year. I only hope that people look on our family and, whether or not believe He exists, see how much my love for my God affects my life. 

Now that my little one gives me the motivation I need to document more of life's happenings, you should see the posts coming more regularly. We'll see.. I'm going to consider this a start to a new episode, Chapter 9.