Sun, Surf and Sleep

T-minus six days until we embark on our first Piperless vacation.  Months ago when we were planning our vacation to St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, we were salivating at the thought of lying on a beach, enjoying a cocktail and sleeping in.  Now that it is less than a week away, I am panicking.

In 15 months, I've only spent one night away from Piper.  She spent that night with grandma and everything went great.  But when we got home, I swear she gave both Ryan and me the cold shoulder.  The little nugget definitely had an attitude and let us know that she knew we had left her.  After a week away she is bound to absolutely hate us.  Plus, I'm not quite sure how I'll deal with the separation anxiety.  Yikes!

Nina and Papa are coming in from Scottsdale to spend the week with Piper.  I have no doubt they'll all have a blast and she will be spoiled rotten.  As I'm compiling a list of lists (emergency numbers, Piper's schedule, like/dislike list, food like/dislike list), I'm starting to wonder if the lists are more for my own security and sanity than Nina and Papa's.    

Hopefully by day two of the trip, I'll be refreshed from sleeping past 5 am, enjoying leisurely dinners and adult beverages.  It will be easier to miss Piper while sipping a pina colada on the beach.  Geez - do I sound like a horrible wommy or what!?  

Nina and Papa have have promised to text photos and keep us updated of how the munchkin is doing.  Stay tuned to see how this wommy handles a week of R&R in the Virgin Islands.  Yes, I know, it's a tough assignment, but someone has to do it.  

    

Tears and Toddlers

This week at daycare drop-off there were some tears, but not from Piper.  I was the one who needed a Kleenex.  Piper officially transitioned from the infant room to the toddler room.  My Sweet P has suddenly become a big girl.

Piper's daycare is wonderful and her teachers are absolutely amazing.  In fact, her teachers have taught me as much as they've taught Piper.  Being a first time mom is completely overwhelming and I constantly asked the teachers for advice.  Heck, her main teacher has 15 years of experience with babies.  She helped me figure out when to transition to baby food and when to move to whole milk.  She calmed my nerves and let me know that everything I was worried about was completely normal.  When I'm worried about Piper not eating enough or not feeling well, her teacher would call to check in throughout the day to let me know how everything was going.  Piper adores her and so do I.

On our last drop-off in infants, I dressed Piper up in a special pink sundress, put her hair in pigtails with matching pink bows and put on her silver shoes.  We got there early and gave all of the teachers little gifts.  I gave Piper's teacher a hug and that's when the tears started.  Then I looked over and saw my Sweet P sitting at the table eating cheerios and she just looked so darn grown up...and the tears really flowed.  Yes, I realize she is only 15 months old, but seeing her next to the younger babies made me realize how quickly time flies by.  I plan to continue enjoying every moment!

The infant room is like a little cocoon and I love getting her settled and chatting with her teacher every morning.  I am going to miss that.

Word on the street is that Piper's teachers in toddlers are pretty fantastic too.  Maybe by the time she transitions to the next classroom I'll be able to hold it together.  Oh who am I kidding, I am sure I'll be the class cry baby once again.