Things I miss about maternity leave! – Mummascribbles

I’ve been sitting thinking today about how much I miss maternity leave. I’ve been back at work for a long time now but I still think back to those wonderful days when Zach and I were at home or when I was part time and had one or two days with him per week, just he and I. I’m always jealous of everyone who goes off to have a baby and experience such a special time!

Things I miss:

Walks
We used to go out all the time. I often put him in his pram and walked anywhere between 5-10km depending on how fit I was feeling! The regular fresh air for both of us was wonderful and I’d get us home, he’d be asleep and I’d very quietly make a cup of tea and treat myself to a slice of cake while he finished his nap!

Parks
We went to the park a lot. There was one not far from our then flat and the other half would always get sent photos of Zach developing his swing and slide skills. It was a good base to find out how quickly he developed, one minute he couldn’t climb the steps up to the slide and suddenly he could!

Classes
We didn’t do a whole bundle of classes but we did go to baby sensory regularly and we loved it so much. It was wonderful to see him develop there, to start exploring the sensory world and see him using new skills. Even when I went back work, I still had baby sensory days off! He goes to a weekly music class now but my mum takes him and so I just get the report from her as to what he has done, what songs he’s sung and what instruments he played! I’ve managed to go a couple of times when I’ve been on annual leave and it always brings fond memories back of being able to take him regularly.

Playgroups
There was a morning playgroup that I discovered not long before I went back to work and we went a few times. I loved watching him play alongside the other children while mummy had a chat with some of the other mummies.

Appointments
Bit of a weird one but I miss being the one to take him to appointments. Twice I have had to ask my mum to take him to the doctors about his eczema (this morning being one of them), but I always feel like it should be me taking him to the appointments. Even though they were a pain in the bum some of the time, I miss the regular visits to the health visitors to get him weighed! It helped that they always gave me good news because he was a greedy little bubba!

Mummy friends
One of the biggest things I miss is my fellow mummy friends. My antenatal girls who used to meet regularly either at someone’s house or in the John Lewis café at Westfield, Stratford and those that I met through Baby Sensory. They are all still there, I just see them a lot, lot less than I did back then and I miss them and their beautiful children.

Sleep cuddles
Oh I miss those sleep cuddles. When Zach used to fall asleep on me and rather than try and put him down, I would simply sit there and enjoy my boy snuggling into me.

Counting down
I miss counting down the hours until the other half came home. Sometimes because I was tearing my hair out but mostly because it was so lovely having him walk through the door, home to his family and the mess! Nowadays, he beats me and Zach home most of the time!

Maternity leave was the best!!