The benefits

As I am now officially back at work, I discovered there are some "benefits" to having a baby and going to work.

1. No need for an alarm clock. Kubus will, without fail, wake up between 5 and 6AM EVERY MORNING. So this is great - I have to get up for work anyway, and instead of the radio playing my favorite songs, I just get poked in the eye! No snooze button for that! Either I get up or end up with a black eye/blind. The only problem with my Kubus alarm is that when I wasn't back at work yet (or on weekends) I would have LOVED to sleep in, just once, to oh, I don't know, something crazy and indulgent, like 7:30AM. And sometimes Kubus wakes up even earlier. Like the other day, he woke up at 4:45AM and was totally wired. He was making this "UGHHHHH!" noise (the kind you do when you're really constipated and trying to push out a jobie, you know the one, don't pretend you don't) and he just wouldn't stop. Finally, in despiration, I turned on the TV, hoping to find a children's show that would distract him for a while. And the Wiggles were on (this annoying Australian children's band, Jordan hates them) and he actually went quiet for a while, totally absorbed. I turned to Jordan and said, "looks like Kubies is really into the Wiggles" and Jordan was like "I don't care if it was gay porn that he was into right now as long as he keeps quiet and lets us sleep."


2. I have a new perspective on getting ready for work and now I appreciate my work clothes on a totally different level. Before Kubes, I really didn't care what I wore to work after the first week of work and the novelty of wearing a suit wore off. And I didn't really care what I looked like. I had the weekends, friends' Christmas parties (ah, Sandy, I miss you!) etc to get all primped and pretty for. Basically, as long as my clothes were clean (or at least looked clean), I was good to go. But while on maternity leave I barely ever got to look nice. At first I was way too fat, so nothing nice fit me anyway. But even as I lost the weight, there was no point in making an effort or even wearing nice pieces, because with a baby your clothes will become stained (i.e. spit up on, peed on, have food wiped on) or dirty within minutes of picking up the little rug-rat. And just forget about ever wearing heels - it takes enough effort as it is in flats to keep your balance and holding a squirmy baby. But, seriously, next time you are out at the mall or something, have a close look at any given moms shoulder - you will invariably see a smudge of something, most probably dried food or some sort, or if its a really small baby shes with, spit up. And poor thing, she probably doesn't even notice its there anymore.

But now, after over a year of looking like a slob, getting ready for work is fun. I like looking pretty. Also, when I'm putting Kubus to sleep at night now and wait for him to fall alseep, I take stock of my closet and put together what I'll be wearing to work the next day. Its great fun, especially since I have a whole bunch of new work clothes that I haven't worn yet, many of which are quite versatile and can be paired in many different ways. I am considering taking pictures of said outfits (complete with which accessories I would use) and putting them on my iPod so if I drew a blank on day, I would have all these ideas. Now, mind you, I've been back at work for a grand total of 4 days so far, so this attitude may well change completely...but I'm enjoying it while it lasts.

3. Because Jordan has been around for all of Kubus' first year, and knows how tough it is to get stuff done with a baby attached to your hip, he takes Kubus and entertains him while I get ready for work. Its great. While on maternity leave, he wouldn't be as patient with me when I was putting on make up or blow drying my hair - he would be pestering me to "hurry up" because "Kubus wants YOU" (translated to "I can't sleep and watch him at the same time, so please take him") but now he knows I have to look presentable at work so I don't hear a peep from him. I love it! And its great because even before Kubus I would have to make an effort to be all quiet and try and get ready in the dark because I would often have to wake up way before Jordan would and didn't want to disturb him (I know, I'm very considerate). But now, as we are all up anyway, I don't have to worry about that (and putting on pants with a HUGE stain on them when I got dressed in the dark once and didn't notice till I was on the subway - was so embarrassed).

I'm sure there are more benefits that I'll discover over the next few weeks...but I have to say, there are also quite a few down sides to this working mom business as well. As it happens, 3 days before I started work Kubus got his first ever fever and then on my first day of work (Jordan said that literally 5 minutes after I left), Kubus broke out in a rash that covered his body. Thank God I knew both Jordan and his mum would be able to deal with it, but I have to say it breaks your heart when you know your baby is sick and you can't be with him. Especially when Jordan's mum said that it looked like it could be measles, and then when we looked up the symptoms online looked like it was a text-book example of measles, minus a cough, which Kubus didn't have. I was so relieved when Jordan sent me an email at work saying that the Dr. didn't think it was measles and if it was, it was a very mild case (I figured I was a bit too new to be chatting on my phone during work hours - at least reading an email that comes to my work email makes it look like I'm doing work).

Anyway, more updates on the life of a working mom to come.