Starting Daycare for Working Moms
Don't be surprised if the first time you drop off your child is extremely difficult. You might cry. Your child might cry. Your child might be totally fine with the daycare thing, and that might make you cry harder.
Know that this is completely normal. You might warm up to the idea (for both of you) by visiting the daycare for a couple hours with you there the first time. If you've exclusively watched your child since birth, you might want to try a couple short sessions with a babysitter.
It can be hard to go cold turkey from maternity leave to working with your child in daycare.
Making Daycare Easier for Working Moms
If you are able to, try spending a couple lunch breaks a week having lunch with your child at daycare. If you are still breastfeeding, try breaking away to nurse instead of pumping. Choosing a daycare close to work instead of close to home can help.
If those aren't viable options, don't be afraid to call and check on your child. Any decent daycare should welcome this, especially with a new mom. Naptimes are generally a better time to get a daycare worker to chat.
Decorate your work space with framed pictures of your child or children, put a picture of your children on your work computer's wallpaper, or even carry an iPod or PDA with pictures and videos of your child to see when you feel especially sad.
Make Evenings and Weekends Count
You might not have as much time with your children as stay-at-home moms. Instead of lamenting that, use it as an excuse to make every moment count.
When your children are awake in the evenings, get as much quality time with them as you possibly can. On weeknights, go for quick and healthy meals instead of dinners requiring a lot of prep time. Save those for weekends.
Allot a certain span of time every evening to just play with your child. It can be such a marathon in the evenings for working moms, that this is so easy to neglect. Even 15 minutes of floor time for fun can go a very long way.
Don't answer your phone until your child or children are in bed. Don't consult your work. Consider the time from arriving at home until your child's bed time to be family time.
On weekends, be sure you also have long stretches of fun time for the kids. Make Saturdays daytrip days to explore the area. Make the most of your off-time with your kids, and it will be easier to cope with the stress and guilt while working.
