First Day Back at the Zoo

Well the first day back at work really wasn't too bad.  It was easier than I thought to get back in the swing of things and not miss Frog Face and Goober too much.  It helps that there are a lot of projects to do so I have less time for distraction.  I even made it to work on time!  Here is a sample of what our daily schedule looks like:

4:30am – Feed Frog Face

5:00am – Go lay down with Goober to try and get her to go back to sleep since it is too early for her to wake up (thankfully, this is not typical for her and she usually sleeps until her wake-up time of 6:30am)

6:00am – leave Goober awake in bed and go eat breakfast and check facebook quickly

6:20am – Put on makeup, brush teeth and hair

6:30am – Go feed Frog Face again

6:40am – Goober joins us (she never did go back to sleep) while I finish feeding Frog Face

6:50am – Pump after Frog Face is done eating

7:05am – Get Goober and Frog Faced changed

7:20am – prepare to get kids out the door (including another diaper change for Frog Face and a potty break for Goober)

7:30am – actually leave the house (woohoo!  so far so good with time!)

7:40am – get to daycare and drop Frog Face off (try hard not to cry and give lots of kisses)

7:45am – Drop a crying Goober off in her room (with lots of kisses)

7:50am – Arrive at work (Early!!!)

8:00am – 10:00am – dig out my desk, clean up, get organized, figure out email, and other work stuff

10:00am – 10:15am – pump (did I mention I HATE pumping?)

10:15am – 11:30am – work stuff

11:30am – eat lunch while working since STARVING

12:40pm – Pump again

1:00 – 3:30pm – Work

3:30pm – Pump. Again.

5:00pm – Leave work to get kids from daycare

5:30pm – get home and make dinner

6:00pm – eat dinner

6:30pm – play with kids

7:30pm – begin bedtime routines

8:45pm – hopefully get both kids asleep and then take a shower

9:15pm – check facebook and eat a snack (STARVING again!)

9:30pm – clean bottles from the day and get milk ready for tomorrow

9:45pm – lay out clothes for the kids and myself, fix lunch, fill up water bottle, etc. for tomorrow

10:00pm – Drop into bed exhausted

2:00am – Frog Face wakes up hungry

4:00am – Frog Face wakes up hungry

4:30am – repeat from top

I do miss my children a lot during the day, but my job provides me with amazing opportunities, both for myself and for my kids.  Today for instance I took an owl for a walk.  Bowie, our 1.5 year old Barn Owl, loves to be outside.  Since he can be temperamental, it is important for the staff to work with him on a regular basis so he remembers us and bonds with us.  It was for this reason that last year when he first came to the zoo the education staff took turns taking him home overnight and hand feeding him so he could acclimate to us easier.  Bowie also will get to fly around our office and “help” us with our work.  He has “helped” by typing random things on our keyboards, hung up the phone for us (while on important calls by the way), and pooping all over our floor.  Since I have been gone for over two months, it is important I spend time with the animals so we can get to know each other again.  So today when I was getting a bit sleepy, I decided to take Bowie for a walk around the zoo.  He wasn’t too happy to see me at first, but as soon as we were outside he perked up and really started enjoying himself.  I enjoyed myself too.  I might just have to do this again tomorrow with our screech owl.  Good exercise, enrichment for the animal, everyone is happy!

Bowie helping me with computer work

He is very fascinated with this paper I am reading too