Take Your Child to Work Day

No, not the official one; that was last month. This was the too-contageous-for-day-care-so let’s-expose-co-workers-instead-since-I-can’t-miss-work-today one.

With the help of a thankfully out-of-the-way office and an amazing assistant who also happens to be a mother of seven and a grandmother of 4 and loves and doesn’t feel put out by a little baby time in her day, I got through my day at work with Nathaniel “Left Eye” Wasylik. In lieu of his usual 8:30 am bottle, I nursed him just before I left at 8, and he fell asleep in the car on the way in and stayed asleep for well over an hour, giving me the time I needed to pull together a first draft of an answer to a federal court complaint that was due today. The we changed and played and he ate some more before staying with Nita while I went to the big bosses’ office for an almost hour-long telephone conference. He took half a bottle while I was gone, and fell asleep on her shoulder just a few minutes before I came back (smart lady — she put the sling over her shoulder so he would smell me!). He slept long enough for me to get through some more work, and then sat nicely on my lap or on the floor or in the sling for a while longer (including sitting in the sling, quietly people watching, the entire time I was downstairs grabbing a very late lunch!) before eating and going down for one last nap. I got the answer filed during that nap, and then it was time to go home!

He only fussed a little bit while Nita was watching him and when he got a little bored, and most folks didn’t even realize he was there. I frankly enjoyed taking nursing breaks rather than pumping breaks. And I got a lot of work done! Although I must say, the sight of me with Nate in a sling, pushing the stroller with the car seat snapped in, the diaper bag and blanket below, and the gymini, toy bag, huge redwell of take-home work in the car seat, was probably a bit much as I was leaving for the day.