Being a stay-at-home-mom

It has been two months plus a few days since I went on maternity leave. The first few days I was on leave - before G was born - I drove S and my mom crazy with my restless energy. I insisted on driving myself and ran a few errands during the day despite protestations from both. A couple of days before G was born, I took a detour to a bookstore unannounced and got an earful from S about being careful, responsible, blah-di-blah. 4 days into my maternity leave, just when S and my mother were despairing about what to do with me, G decided to make an appearance. That put an end to their high BP.

Being a stay-at-home-mom has been interesting. The first month or so, despite being fully occupied with G, I had this need to get out of the house and go somewhere at least once a day. I felt cooped up not being able to step out and do stuff. But I think I've grown into it. I have slowed down. A lot. Which is quite something because I've always been a very restless type. I am enjoying -

- not being tied to a cubicle all day long
- being able to get out and savor the sun, the rain and the wind at will. I am writing this post sitting outside in our patio, basking in the early morning sun. I could get used to this.
- being able to devote time to reading and introspection.
- hot, home-cooked meals for lunch. I can't tell you how much I hate eating out of lunch boxes which is exactly what I've been doing all these years. Ugh. Takes the joy out of life.
- spending time with my parents and my baby.
- watching a LOT of TV. Granted this is not exactly nourishing, it feels good to watch TV whenever without having to worry about work, grocery lists, cooking and cleaning..
- not having to schedule everything around weekends. Maybe this should make the top of the list. I feel liberated being able to go to the park, watch a late-night movie, stay up late reading or call friends during the week without worrying about work the next day. It feels G.R.E.A.T!

I miss the intellectual stimulation of problem-solving at work. But I've found enough household problems to keep me occupied. Such as the ant-infestation which we can't seem to get rid of. Or finding the best cleaner for the bathrooms and the wooden floors. Or figuring out how to make S's undershirts sparkling white like they show in the Rin ads back home. Or managing the grocery inventory.

Right. So far so good. S is predicting I'll be tearing my hair out in the next few months and will be itching to go back to work. We'll see about that. For now, I am going to get back to drinking my filter coffee as I laze around in the beautiful Fall sun until G wakes up. Ciao.