Making It Work

Dear Reader-

I have been a Work At Home Mom… (or most days more like a Work-aholic At Home Mom- but that is another post)  for going on 2 years.

It has been a blessing to be available and present during times I would normally miss during a typical workday.

It is also a struggle to fit 28 hrs worth of work, family and sanity into 24 hrs.

It is flexible and fun to set my own schedule so that I can be in a meeting one day and at the Children’s Museum the next.

It is also full of squishy boundaries that have to be reset and navigated constantly due to a shift in a client’s needs or because someone spilled a boxed juice in the living room.

It is so rewarding to do work that I love and to choose who I work with while getting to enjoy everyday Mommy moments throughout the day.

It is also overwhelming when everyone needs something — be it a grilled cheese, phone call or presentation– all at the same time.

Most days I wake up and can’t believe that I actually get to all the things I love… that this is what I have always wanted.

And then there are days (ahem… I am looking at you Mr. This Past Monday*) where nothing is going right and life feels a bit like a treadmill that never stops and there is no way to just stop for a minute to take a break. Only I don’t get the exercise benefits of said treadmill– which is completely and totally unfair- Just sayin’

I hear similar stories from my friends– fellow work at home moms, stay at home moms, working moms, women without kids… doesn’t matter.

Everyone is searching for another hour or two in the day.

Everyone is multi-tasking their way through our days.

Many love what they do all while craving some sort of balance that alludes us somehow.

Ah, balance… to find a way to make sure there are more good days and minimize the bad days.

But, life… it doesn’t pause a moment to let us lose the weight or play with the playdoh unless we force it.

We often think if we could just change this or that, it would make all the difference.

However, obtaining our dream jobs, life situations, etc. are only the first steps in a journey I think.

At least for me, I think it boils down more to planning, priorities and attitude more than anything.

It takes a lot of work to make our life choices work for us… to create boundaries, make tough choices and keep our inner guilt in check.

But oh it is so important,  or we might just wake up after a week, a month or even a year and realize there have been more treadmill moments than meaningful ones.

*Edited: I apparently had such a bad day Monday that I originally mistook it for Tuesday! But it was definitely a Monday 😉