Back to Work

The end of my Maternity Leave is gradually coming into sight. It's a scary thought to think the last time I worked a full day (outside of the home, being a stay at home mum is like having twenty jobs in one) was back in January.

I've been saying I'll go in ever since about June, but then I was away at a family wedding in Wales when I got a phone call to let me know that my team was being axed and the majority of the people on it were taking redundancy. I was lucky that I was on Maternity Leave because that meant there would be a job waiting for me when I got back.

But the not knowing just what job that would be meant I put off getting in touch. My original plan to visit in July seemed a bit silly, after all, my team would become defunct, so there was no point to me sitting and being shown the ropes in something I wouldn't be doing any more. So July passed.

August will forever remain as the month of the Boob-hah (like a hoo-hah, but boobier), which I will blog about in the future. It knocked my confidence a little and didn't put me in the frame of mind to leave Laurie for any great length of time, so I put off my visit a little longer.

Until the very end of the month, when I got a message from a colleague on another team I'm involved with asking if I could come and visit and lend a hand if it wasn't too much trouble. You see, at work I'm known for my superior cutting and sticking skills (seriously, if when I return to work they could offer me a job sitting at a desk, printing out, laminating, cutting out and generally prettifying the displays, I would be thrilled). The remaining team members? Not so hot at the cutting and sticking thing. So they called in the expert.

And today I rocked up, not knowing just how long I'd be in there for, so I'd taken my trusty breast pump along with me, should the occasion arise to use it.

I very nearly had a wobble getting out the car and watching Mr Click drive away with little Laurie tucked into the back seat. Laurie was completely oblivious to the fact that for the first time ever there would be whole miles between him and I; that I wouldn't just be in the next room, or across the building from him if he needed me.

I felt like crying. He apparently was perfectly happy. In fact, he went home and ate steak for lunch. That tells you how much he was missing me!

But I think it did me good to get out of the house and speak to adults who I'm not related to by blood or marriage. Or to people who are seven months old and wear nappies. I was able to have proper conversations which didn't begin with me saying 'mummy's going to go to the toilet' in a high pitched voice, and then continue the subsequent conversation with a baby who is dribbling into a fistful of my hair as I carry him up to the bathroom.

And I was able to talk about just what might happen with me when I go back. Including the one subject I was little nervous about broaching; not going back full time, as had been the original plan when I left. It's looking pretty positive that that's going to be an option for me.

I'm going back next week to put my awesome cutting and sticking skills to good use. In fact, I've spent a chunk of time this evening playing around with fonts for the displays and clip art, just to get an idea of what I'm wanting to do.

And I'll admit that I was secretly hoping that Laurie would give his dad a bit of a hard time while I was away from him, just so that I would still feel needed. Well, he was totally happy and barely noticed I wasn't there. The spousal unit coped marvelously as well.

But then when I got home he tried putting a Size 2 nappy onto my Size 3-wearing baby, so it turns out that I am still needed after all!