First week of work

My first week of work went very good, I must say. By day 5, Marc didn't cry or so much as grunt when I dropped him off! And apparently throughout the day, he does drink my expressed milk that from a straw mostly, but he also drinks out of an open cup and a funky "breast-like" bottle. I enjoy being at work also - and believe it or not, I have more energy when come home in the evening than I did when I was home with the kids. Being a stay at home mom is work. And it is a different kind of work than working-work. It is mentally trying, which causes it to be more physically trying than it is meant to be. Being frustrated, or strained emotionally affects you physically and my comparison of work vs. mom-work is a perfect example. Though I do work with people and sick people mostly, I am able to separate myself from it emotionally. However, with my kids I am not. Another nice thing about being at work is that when I am there, work is what I am thinking of. It truly gets your mind off of the other things in your life that when they linger on your brain, cause you stress. Right now, my mind feels at ease when I am there. I know it is common for working moms to feel guilty about working and/or enjoying it, but I wonder, why should I feel guilty if I am more peaceful, more energetic and providing my kids with socialization that they seem willing and comfortable being handed over to? I have been home with my daughter for almost three years, and I have made an excellent foundation for her and my boy and I don't believe this child care situation will change that. As I said to my boss, I will not draw any generalizations until at least two weeks have passed because we all need to adjust to the "new normal". But so far, this arrangement is going very well.
I think it is very important to have faith in time. Time is powerful and healing and it cannot be rushed. I know this is my situation: I am going back to work, and I am leaving my kids for the vast majority of the day with a certified stranger. I know that this may seem like a painful realization to someone who has stayed home with her children and micromanaged everything in their life, which is the nature of a stay-at-home-mom. But I also know that time will make it less painful and time will make it work out so that mom and kids are pleased with the arrangement. So I am taking the position of deferring my emotional reaction until some time has passed so as to skip over any futile worry or sadness and get right to the satisfied contentedness of the situation. If I feel as if I maybe worrying, I remind myself that the temporary problem will resolve and my worry will be wasted energy. I also must say that this is probably easier for me than others and I am thankful for that and I like myself and the way my mind functions just fine.