Working Gal

I'm happy to report, I survived my first week back at work. Sunday night and Monday morning were a little tough on this Mama, but I made it. With Mitch working in St. Paul now, we've changed up our usual morning routine. I'm the dropper off-er and he's the picker upper. Monday morning, I loaded a very sleepy Harper and Emmett into the car and headed to my parents house. As I gave my kisses goodbye, I got a little teary eyed. Harper looked at me with such a sincere look and said, "Mom, it's okay. It'll be fine!" At that point I could't help but laugh. My sweet 2 year old was exactly right, I would be just fine!

It was nice to see my REACH family and get back into the swing of things. Most of my work week was spent catching up on emails and finding my old work groove. The days flew by, but at the end of the day I couldn't wait to get home to see my babes (Mitch too, of course)! 

Mitch took last Friday off, which was also the last day of my maternity leave. We dedicated the day to family time and celebration of a wonderful 8 weeks. The crummy weather made our activity decision easy - Mall of America. Harper has grown to love Nickelodeon Universe and now thinks all malls have indoor amusement parks. We rode rides, visited Sea Life Aquarium and roamed the mall halls. Mitch and Harper walked away sporting some new hats! It really was a wonderful family day!

Saturday, Mitch planned a day date for us. He's been trying to get me to go shooting with him for years and I just hadn't budged. I obviously couldn't go to the gun range while I was pregnant with Emmett, but now I was out of excuses - I agreed to give it a try. Much to my surprise, I enjoyed myself very much. By the end of session, I was actually hitting the target where I was aiming - now that's progress!

Although I was back at work this week, that didn't stop our fun! Our Monday nights are booked with music class and Tuesdays with dance. Wendesday we decided to let Harper burn off some of her energy at the Maple Maze after work. I was lucky enough to accompany her through the tunnels and down the slides. I quickly realized, 1. I'm extremely out of shape and 2. the maze is not meant for my nearly 30 year old knees! Even though I left with sore legs, Harper had a huge smile so that made it worth it!

We've also started a new bedtime tradition - DANCE PARTY! Harper quickly took a liking to Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville, it practically brought a tear to my eye. I quickly taught her when to yell "Salt, Salt, Salt" like we do at JB concerts. She loved it! I'm raising my very own Parrothead and can't wait until she's old enough to join us for a concert. Such a proud Mama!

Today we celebrated Emmett's 2 month milestone. It's incredible how fast these couple months have gone and Emmett continues to melt our heart. He's starting to show a little more personality and flashes flirty looks and gummy smiles frequently, which never gets old. His sleeping habits are improving, which makes this gal very happy. Monday we have his 2-month appointment. I'm excited to hear his latest stats, but none of us are looking forward to the shots! :(

 

Besides celebrating Emmett's 2-month "birthday" today, we also enjoyed trick-or-treating down Maple Grove Main Street. Paul and Bennett joined us while Kody ran the Monster Dash half marathon - way to go Kody! Harper and Bennett toted around their halloween buckets, cute as could be in their costumes. Candy, face painting, toys and beautiful weather made it a perfect trick-or-treating experience. We met up with Kody afterwards at Snuffy's Malt Shop for some lunch. It was yet another fun outing with the Donahue family!

 

Until next time…

The Helleen's