Back to work

Well, I've done it, returned to work, completed my "maternity leave," although I'm not sure why they call it "maternity leave" in this country.  In Europe, Canada, and many other countries mothers and fathers are given time to be with their new child, without financial stress or worry about losing a job.  I just took almost 5 months unpaid from my work, and this is viewed by many as a long leave.  At the same time, others are judging me for having gone back to work at all---don't I want to be with my baby, they ask?!?  All in all, I am working on staying positive and reminding myself that 15 hours/week is an ideal amount of time to work.  I am grateful to have the opportunity to continue my career but still be with my children the majority of the time.  Additionally, we have an amazing nanny who is the support that we need in order to make our life work.  I feel sad to leave sweet AlteLu in the mornings, but I know she is in good hands.

Speaking of AlteLu, how crazy that she is almost 5 months old already!  She is smiley and sweet, and definitely eager to be on the move.  Jacob thinks that she might crawl before she can sit up on her own!  She is endlessly chit-chatty and she and Hershel are best friends.  They love talking to each other, reading books, and shnuggling.

Hersh is also doing very well, ready at any moment to engage anyone around in a game of his own design--the rules of which get increasingly complex as the game continues--or break into an impromptu song or story about the various objects in his field of vision.  Like any three-year-old, he's working on impulse control, with mixed success.  Recently, he's started blaming poor decisions on his "addendix" (not totally sure what that is, but pretty sure it's inspired by the Madeleine book).  To whit, the following two conversations:

Scene I
Jacob: "Hersh, why did you knock on Alte's door when she's trying to sleep?"
Hersh: "I don't know.  I know I shouldn't do it, but my addendix just told me to do it."
Jacob: "Well, maybe before you listen to your addendix, you should think it about what the right thing to do is."
Hersh: "Yeah, but sometimes, my addendix just tells me."

Scene II
Jacob: "Sometimes the most fun things are things that are hard at first, but then you keep trying, and it gets better and better."
Hersh: "Yeah, but my addendix says that if you can't do something the first time, then you should never try it ever again."
Jacob: "Your addendix gives terrible advice."