First Days with the Nanny

It's only 4 days until I go back to work, and my nanny (M) started work on Monday.  She was here for a few hours on Monday, just learning where everything is in my apartment, and getting to know Finn.  She then went with me to his 2 month pediatrician appointment, where he weighed in at 15.2 pounds.  I still can't figure out how I managed to grow such a big baby!  Our first day was nice - she was obviously comfortable with Finn and he seemed completely comfortable and happy with her.

But the real test was yesterday, when I had to go to training at work and was gone from 5pm-9pm, which is the longest I've been away from Finn since he was born.  Ok, it's only the second time I've been away from him since he was born, and the first time I left him with my mom.  For 45 minutes.  So yesterday was a big deal.  Did I mention that Finn hadn't taken a bottle yet?

But I need to back up just a bit here, because I never got around to blogging about an important player in the rest of the story - my nanny cameras.  I never thought I'd get them, but then Jennie told me I have to, and she showed me the cameras she has around her house - and how she can log in to them from her computer and see what's going on at her house whenever she wants.  That's when I realized how nice it would be to be able to check in, just to see how things were going.  It doesn't hurt that Jennie's husband is a home automation specialist, and knew the best (inexpensive) cameras to get, and was willing to install them for me.  At my interviews I asked the candidates if they were ok with nanny cams (which Jennie's husband tells me I should call surveillance cameras, as that sounds nicer), and told them I planned on having them.  The ethics of hidden cameras aside, it's not like I can hide them - if you go with inexpensive cameras, you don't get tiny, inconspicuous cameras.  I now have 3 cameras in my house and a website I can log into from anywhere and see what's going on.  Not only can I log in, but my friends can log in, too.

Twenty minutes into my training class I get a text from Jennie, "She's holding him and he's taking a bottle!" followed by a screen shot of my living room, with M holding Finn and very clearly giving him a bottle.  Ten minutes later I get a text from M, telling me that he was getting a little choked on the first bottle she tried, and wanted to know where the other bottles were.  I already had some Tommee Tippees clean, so I told her to try that next.  An hour later, she texted me, "He just took 4 ounces, and is now asleep."  Not long after that, Jennie's husband emailed me a picture of Finn asleep in his swing.  When I got home, some soft music was playing, the living room was clean, and Finn was babbling happily in his swing.

Today I left him for another 4 hours, this time to get my hair cut and highlighted.  It was when I was leaning back, having my hair shampooed, when I realized how much I've neglected myself the past few months.  I didn't think I needed time away, but I've realized that I was wrong.  It was wonderful having a few hours of being pampered.  Somehow I'm going to need to find some time to do that at least once every few weeks.  I ran some errands after that (and had Jennie check in to tell me that Finn was asleep in his crib - officially the first time he's stayed asleep there!) and came home to find the laundry done, the floor vacuumed and Finn watching M fold his clothes.  He took another 3 ounces while I was gone, and then ate as soon as I got home.

M will be here for a few hours tomorrow and Friday, and then Finn and I have the weekend together before it's back to work for me.  I'm going to miss him so much, but I do feel better about leaving him, now that it looks like he's going to eat, and it's obvious M likes him and is going to take good care of him.