The worst day.

Well, it happened. My maternity leave ended and I had to go back to work. October 3rd was my first day back at the hospital to work a 12 hour shift in the NICU. While I love my job, I had been somewhat dreading the day I'd have to return- and it had nothing to do with the job, and everything to do with Owen. I love him to death and thoroughly enjoy spending my days with him. He can frustrate me at times, as is the case with all babies, but I mostly just adore him.
I love taking care of the precious little babies in the NICU, but to be there for them means leaving my own precious little baby behind. Not cool. :'(
I thought I'd be a sobbing mess, I really did. I admittedly was a little teary the night before, when putting Owen to bed. I hated the thought of missing out on an entire day with him. But I was even more concerned about how he would handle an entire day without me. Justin would be the one to watch him my first day back, which made me a little less stressed. I fed Owen in the morning around 5:30AM, then sadly put him back in his crib.
It took me about 45 minutes to get to work. I received a warm welcome back from my coworkers, which is always nice. My assignment was busy and helped the time to pass by quickly. The parents of my babies were very sweet and expressed appreciation for my caring for them... that helped a little. :) Finding time to go and pump was a challenge, but worked out fairly well. I texted Justin periodically throughout the day asking for updates and photos of Owen. I was relieved to hear that he was doing just fine. Daddy even let him wear his PJs all day. :)
When I got home from work, I hugged my little man extra tight. After his bath and feeding, it was off to bed again.
I missed Owen terribly, but do feel a bit more comfortable about being back at work... at least for now. ;) Many thanks to all of you who were praying for a smooth transition!