Lockdown Maternity Leave


Maternity leave. That thing that we all generally look forwards to, mainly because instead of rushing around and going to work, we rush around going to baby groups, coffee dates and lunch trips... Except, right now, none of that is happening.

 My Maternity Leave pretty much started at the exact same time as the UK went into 'lockdown'. So I never got chance to go to the groups before my baby arrived to meet other Mams due at the same time. Neither did I get to have the lunch dates with my friends in the last few weeks before my baby arrived. In short, the announcement on that Monday night changed the course of my second Mat leave, and made it unrecognisable from the first.

 My lg is home from school. Permanently. OK, in some respects, we're fortunate in that we've been able to renegotiate the split with her Dad to make it more stable, less toing and froing, but when she's home, she's here 24/7, and she has no one but us to play with. And with a newborn, that's exhausting. Because when the baby sleeps, that's when the 7yo needs your help to do the school stuff, to go out for her daily exercise, to have some time just with Mam.

 In some respects, lockdown has been a revelation. No running around fitting in school runs around a newborn. Being able to stay home and focus on feeding and just being us has been great.

 None of our families have been able to cuddle the baby. There is a chance my Maternity leave will be over before baby groups are allowed to keet again. 

 Finding baby clothes is a nightmare. So few shops are open / delivering that the small baby sizes are out of stock. 

 Post lockdown, groups of people are going to take some getting used to. For all of us. Me included (possibly especially). I'm actually enjoying not being expected to go everywhere, do everything. Not being surrounded by people. Not being crammed in to small spaces with loads of other people. 

 I'm enjoying the calm of the lockdown. So much so that I don't think I want to go back to the manic pace that was my life before. 

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