Working Moms

Well, my time as a working mom is almost over.  My last day was originally supposed to be this Friday but to help give my mother-in-law (and myself!) some much needed shopping time I changed it to this Wednesday.  I can't wait!  I love morning time with Shaylin.  She's in the best mood then & I hate that I've been missing it.  But at the same time I'm thankful that I had the opportunity to pull in some much needed cash.  It helped us to afford plane tickets to my family for Thanksgiving & has made Christmas shopping a little easier.

So what have I learned from this experience? 

It's hard.  Really, really hard.

I applaud all you working moms out there, especially the full-time working moms.  Every morning I rush around the house, giving myself only 1 hour to get up, do my makeup & hair, pack my lunch, pack Shaylin's bag, & nurse Shaylin.  When I drop Shaylin off with my mother-in-law I just block out that I'll be away from her for 5 hours.  She gets to play with her Nana & Nana gets to spend a lot of quality time with one of her grandchildren.  Shaylin is her first grandchild that's in town so time with her is very special. 

We usually get home by 1:45 which is when Shaylin is ready for an afternoon nap.  She tends to fall asleep in the car which recharges her so I let her stay up a little longer & play.  I feel like that gives me some time to "reconnect" with her.  Then it's nap time, which lately hasn't lasted very long.  That's hard on me because that's been my only chance to run or do any cleaning or laundry.  So my running has definitely slacked in the last 6 weeks.  You moms that manage to train for marathons while working are especially impressive to me.  You should get a medal just for that.

Most of all I've learned that I don't miss working.  I've been working in an insurance office & have written some policies but none of them gave me the joy I get with Shaylin.  I know there are many moms out there that work simply because they have to if they want to pay bills or buy groceries.  It's just the way things are now for many families.  And I can't fault them for that.  We could have been in that position, too, and I'm so thankful that God provided a way out for us.  I'm also so thankful for my husband who works extra hard to keep me at home.  But again, I'm thankful God provided way for him to do that.

So for you working moms out there, I pray that God gives you strength to get through each day.