First day of daycare...

Well, today was Shelby's first day at daycare. I didn't sleep too much last night, thinking about how it would feel to be away from her (note the dark circles under my eyes... yikes...). I haven't really been away from her since the day she was born. We've gotten a couple of 'breaks' from my parents when they visited and a friend watched her one night while we went out to dinner but that's about it. Nothing remotely close to a full day...

This morning we dropped her off at daycare with all of her necessities. The two teachers in the infant room were so nice. They are both moms and totally understand the anxiety I was feeling. I think Jon was feeling it a bit too. They gave me some time with her and were so kind. I tried not to cry but that didn't last long. The tears just rolled as we walked back to the Shelby-mobile.

I called once during the day to check on her and they said she was doing really well. She cried some, fighting sleep but I know that is normal for her. She doesn't want to fall asleep sometimes. I think she knows there's a whole lot that she could be doing if she were awake... new things to see and experience!

We picked her up a little early and the teacher said she did great for her first day. She was a little grumpy about taking naps but nothing unusual. They said the other teachers there wanted to come in and hold her. Looks like she may be a popular baby! Boy was she tired tonight. She fell asleep on the way home and slept for about 2 hours. We woke her up to give her a bath and bottle. Now she's asleep again. I asked my friend, Amy, about how her son was the first day/week of daycare. Sounds like she will be exhausted for a little while. That may mean early nights for us. Who knows...

It was very sad to be without her. I worked from home today so I could be close in case I needed to run up there. During the day I walked into her room and it just seemed so empty. I took a deep breath and could smell her scent. I never really realized she had one until now. I mean, I knew she smelled wonderful but I guess I never really thought about her own scent. The dogs seemed to be looking for her too. I think they missed her as well.

Tomorrow is another day. I hope this gets easier. So far it is gut wrenching to be away from her.