My last day of maternity leave

Today is my last day staying at home full-time with Isabel, and I am already starting to miss her! We go to Florida on vacation next week, so I still have a week and a half before I have to go back to work, but even being in Florida will not be the same as the precious time I have been able to spend bonding with her these past 12 weeks. I will miss the smell of her as she sometimes sleeps on my chest, with her head on my shoulder (when we sometimes "cheat" and don't lay her down for a nap in her crib!) I will be thinking about her constantly as I drive to work that first day, and often while I am in the office, even though she will be in the best of care. I will be away from her for 10 hours on the days I go to my office, which seems like an eternity to me after never having been parted from her for more than 4 hours at a time so far. Having said this, though, I do have to express my gratitude to God that He has made a way for me to only have to go back to work part time. Others do not always have that option, and Luke and I are working diligently to make sure that we can have this option for as long as I want to stay at home part time with Isabel and any other children that come along in the future! As bittersweet as it is, I look forward to this next chapter in our lives, as I now begin to balance the responsibility of raising our daughter with the responsibilities of my career. It will allow Daddy more time with Isabel too, as he will be the one getting home earlier on the days that both of us work. So they will have some special Daddy-daughter bonding time on those evenings until I get home!