A reflection on the past 5 months...

As I prepare to go back to work, I am filled with a thousand different emotions.  I am a completely different person than I was 5 months ago, and not just because I had a baby.  David and I had everything thrown at us since the day he was born...from high bilirubin levels that kept us going back to the hospital for a couple of weeks after he was born, to enlarged kidney scares, to the whole reason I wrote this blog.  5 months ago, I would have been hesitant to call a doctor knowing she was in surgery.  I wouldn't have spent hours wasted on the phone with the insurance company to make sure a certain test was covered.  I laid down at every rude and incompetent front dest medical staff member until I had Jack.  Now we know, we are his biggest advocate and you bet we'll do what we have to. 

The first three months of his life were all about figuring out how to get back to normal with an infant.  We had just gotten into a groove and the cataracts hit.  Part of me feels a bit jipped - that the majority of my maternity leave was spent on the phone, in a doctor's office or hospital, or stuck in traffic on our way there.  But most of all, I feel completely blessed to have had these last 5 months at home.  I learned a lot about myself, after being "screwed and tattooed" as my mom puts it.  I went from being absolutely terrified to leave the house, to toting Jack anywhere and everywhere.  I got to meet a wonderful group of moms (who I actually blame for making going back to work so hard - I didn't think maternity leave would be that fun!). 
So here I go, back to work.  It will be nice to be somewhere where I get to use my brain and my talents, and hang out with people who are older than one, but it breaks my heart to leave Jack.  He is going to a wonderful daycare center, where they love him already. 

The blog entries will slow down...for many reasons.  One is that hopefully there will not be much to report on Jack's eyes.  He's done with eyedrops, and we have been getting the contacts in and out pretty successfully.  His opthamologist couldn't have been happier with his progress at his checkup on Wednesday.  The other reason is that I am a teacher, and let's be honest, there just won't be time!  Thank you to everyone who has been keeping up with Jack's Journey.  At the opthamologist on Wednesday, I met the mother of a 9 week old who had just gotten the diagnosis of an eye problem for her little one.  It broke my heart to see her so heartbroken, because that was us only 2 short months ago.  It is AMAZING to see how far we have come!  I hope that this blog will continue to be shared and help moms like that, because we are living proof that you do survive this. 

I'll leave you with a picture of my little angel - contacts and all!