19.10.11

My New Family



Today Pea is five weeks old.  I've been in my own little world in these last happy weeks, barely noticing much else besides my son's beautiful big eyes, coos and gurgles, button nose and endless facial expressions.  Summer has retreated once again and the days have become shorter and shorter.  Whenever I say that I always think of my father saying 'No, the days aren't getting shorter.  They are still 24 hours long.' yuk yuk.

My mother came to spend 10 days with us.  It was a lovely visit but as I always have to admit at the end it passed too quickly.  Still, it was wonderful to be able to introduce Pea to his Oma.  My mother decided being called Grandma didn't quite suit her and decided she would prefer Oma.  I guess it's like swearing in another language.  You just don't feel the full impact of the same word in your native language.  Regardless of what she prefers to be called, she loves having Pea in her life, the grandchild she had given up on having.

The Saffa and I are settling into the routine of taking care of an infant.  The Saffa is a fantastic father and loves spending every minute possible with Pea.  He went back to the UK for a few days while my mother was here for his son's 16th birthday.  After my mother left I had a couple of days to take care of Pea on my own.  Happily he was a very good boy and we could manage but I have to admit that I much prefer the feeling of completeness when the three of us are together as a family.  It just feels right.

Now that I am more or less healed from the c-section and settling into a rhythm of taking care of Pea and our home, I am trying to soak up and enjoy every minute of this time.  Although the return to work is 6 months away, I am sure it will fly by quickly.  I would love to have a longer time with Pea at home; it feels too short to me.  I already know if we have a little brother or sister for Pea that I will be taking off longer next time.  Even when I go back to work, life has new purpose and priorities and I want to spend every possible minute with my family.  

So, not a lot of blog posting going on lately but all is well.  All is even better than that.

Posted from Munich  

8 comments:

tqe | Adam said...

Congratulations on the five week mark -- I hope that you're enjoying the time as much as possible.

Adam

Aimee said...

I can't believe it's been five weeks already! Can you imagine so many of the American moms who go back to work just weeks after their babies are born? Someone we know went back to work after a week because she didn't have leave and couldn't afford to not have the income.

Unknown said...

I will have to go back to work at 11 months and I'm screaming about it already. I don't even want that time to come, and that's about 4 months away.. Argh!

I would agree that 3 is so much better than 2! And the grandchild thing, I so know what you mean. My mom got her little granddaughter finally...

Glad you are enjoying your little guy. Time flies by too fast. Enjoy the outdoors before the weather turns even more!

Mandi said...

Wow, congratulations on your new little one! Glad to hear you're on the mend. Enjoy this time together!

Nikki (www.bookpunks.com) said...

Congrats! Oh am I excited for that time to come for me! Best of luck...

Jul said...

Glad to hear you are doing so well!

US Tax Abroad said...

Enjoy the time..it flies by and is so precious the first year of birth! x D.

Megan said...

Hi Michelle, Congratulations on your little guy! I can understand not having time to write much, as you know I've been absent online as well. Lately anything I can't do one handed with a smartphone doesn't really get done. But life is returning to a 'new normal' and I think I'll be back on my blog soon. I hope to see you on here again too in the near future - I'm curious to read how things are going. Good luck with the flight to the US for the holidays, I hope it's an easy trip. - Megan