The gift of a smile...

     This past week was my first week back to work.  Yes, a very sad moment indeed!  While Ray and I are at work, a wonderful lady by the name of Kim takes care of Walker.  When I was pregnant, I began the search for daycare for Walker.  I was not feeling the daycare setting for my baby....I didn't like the line of cribs that made their way around the perimeter of the room, nor did I like that Walker would be one of 10 babies for 2 care givers.  So, I began to use my network of people to research at home sitters.  I interviewed a lady who was awesome, but her hours didn't work.  The others that I found were not taking any new infants.  I felt defeated.  I began to pray about Walker's child care situation.  One day at work the science coach asked how my search was going.  I shared with her my frustrations and she mentioned that one of her old teammates took her son to a lady that she spoke highly of.  She said that she would email her former co-worker to get her information.  Within the end of the day, Ray and I had a time set up to meet with this lady. 

     We met Mrs. Kim and I instantly felt comfortable.  Kim has a gift of working with kiddos.  You can tell this when she interacts with Walker and other children.  The kids at Mrs. Kim's house play as if they are at home.  The atmosphere that is in her home is a loving and safe environment....a much different feeling than that of a day care.

     Even though I felt comfortable with Kim, as the day drew closer to leave Walker and go back to work, I began to have every emotion run through my brain.  I decided it would be a good idea to go over to Mrs. Kim's during the day and just hang out with Walker and the other kiddos so I could visually see that everything was going to be alright.  Since I'm overally organized, I made Kim a folder that I gave her ahead of time so she could get a feel for how Walker's schedule went on a daily basis.

A good friend of mine, Tanir, is also going to have Kim care for her baby, so Walker will have a playmate that he is close to in age. Tanir and I went to visit Mrs. Kim together.  As you can tell, Alena and Walker quickly made themselves at home. 

The day finally arrived for me to take Walker to Mrs. Kim's and leave him there all day!  I was mentally prepared, but not 100% emotionally.  I had everything packed and ready to go the night before.  All of Walker's bottles were in a little lunch box, his diaper bag was restocked and I even had his caterpillar to go with us.

The morning went off smoothly getting ready and then getting Walker fed and dressed...it all went as planned.  Walker was even able to watch a bit of his favorite...Mickey Mouse.  Of course we took pictures to capture the moment...

 

     The first day was not the easiest thing for me to do, but it certainly wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be.   I shed some tears on the way to work, and was a little emotional throughout the day.  Kim emailed me during the day to give me updates on my lil man!  He stayed on schedule with feedings and naps.  :)  Ironically, Walker has started to smile more and more this week!  It has been so heart warming to see him start to share with us his smiles.  I can't wait until the smiles become more and more frequent!  :)  Walker is such a happy baby.  Check out a few of the grins we have captured this past week.

As each day passes, I enjoy watching Walker explore the world around him and soak up every moment!  He's a great example of what it means to just listen and watch.  I'm sure that his little brain is creating all kinds of amazing neuron pathways every second because he is so very excited to be a part of God's great Earth.  Since my last post, Walker has taken his 9 week and 10 week picture.  These are a testament to him growing physically and mentally each day because we are starting to see more and more of his personality.

Walker Reagan...You are two and a half months old.  You have discovered that a smile can melt peoples heart, turn someones bad day into a good one, and most of all you know that a smile is a way to share your joy with someone else.  Your smiles are such a gift to me. 

Today I packed away your newborn clothes and quite a few of your three month clothes.  You are doing a fantastic job of growing and learning about the world around you, but today made me think back to how small you were the day that I brought you home from the hospital.  I keep thinking that everyone is right, babies grow fast, enjoy every moment!    It breaks my heart to know that we spend our days during the week away from each other.  I know that the quality of time that I spend with you is much more valuable than the quantity of time I spend with you.  I want to be the best mommy for you, and that means that I have to work to be able to provide the best of the best for you.  W, you do nothing but amaze me every day!  I love you lil man!