Stress, you are not welcome here.

People have asked"how often does she nap?" and "how much milk does she get in a 24-hour period?" and "when are you going to feed her solids?" mostly I just grin and think to myself "hmmm...that's a good question!" Truth is, as a part-time working mama, I find it more difficult to create and abide by a fairly rigid schedule for Claire. Every day is different from the last. Some begin when Claire wakes any time between 7.30-9am and some begin when I am forced to wake her at 6 to get her to Grandma's before work. Of course, it's expected that she has a little bit of a different schedule on days spent with Grandma vs. days spent with her papa vs. days spent at home with boring old mom. The problem for me is finding balance. Thank goodness through this process I have learned (and/or am still learning) to fly a little more by the seat of my pants or else my extreme OCD would rear its ugly head daily. But, for some reason, with Claire I am more relaxed about things. She's happy, healthy and incredibly adorable. Those things, paired with her good-natured temperament, reassures me that her needs are being met and she is fine. If the fact that I cannot really spout out stats about milk intake or total minutes slept in a 24-hour time frame is my biggest downfall as a mama, I will take it. Once I went back to work I realized I had to relinquish some control for my own sanity and, as a result, I unburdened myself. That fact-analyzing/recording side of me slinkered away to die. Now, I am more relaxed. Claire gets fed on demand (mostly breast milk) by breast and bottle, she gets her naps in when she's tired and she's growing like a weed. I would say this new no-stress approach is working out for the both of us!