Adjusting

One of the first things the director of our agency's transitional home told us about R is that, even at 3 months old, she liked routine.  Oh, how true this simple statement has become!  My R is someone who thrives on structure and routine.

With that said, our summer has been anything but routine.  A was off for a week before starting a new job, and then when he did start, he was on a basic 8 to 5 shift.

Last week, he started his "normal" shift of 11:30 to 8:30pm.  This has been hard on both girls.  E usually stays up until he gets home, and she whimpers about missing daddy for 30 to 45 minutes before he does come home.  R has had a horrible time adjusting to his being gone at night.  Dinnertime and bedtime are really hard for me.  Yes, A is home in the mornings, but mornings have always been "easier" than evenings for my girls.

In short, I do NOT want to complain about my husband's job.  In the long run, this job is going to be a good thing for our family, and I am so thankful that he is employed.  However, this adjustment to the new routine of our life is difficult on all of us right now.

I know that eventually, this new life will become routine.  It is just hard to parent my kids solo, and my sweet girls miss their daddy.  I am fearful of when I return to work because it will be hard to balance school responsibilities with parenting the girls alone.  And the girls will only see their daddy in the morning when he takes them to school/my friend M's house for the day.