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.

10 Months Old

I'm a little behind on this post since Shaylin turned 10 months while we were on vacation.  But I don't want this "birthday" to go without mentioning.

Shaylin continually amazes me at how fast she's growing up.  Everyday I see less of a baby & more of a kid.  She's got such a cute & funny personality & is just a sweetheart.

Here are some milestones:

-She's starting "cruising" across things like the coffee table.  I hear that's just before their actual first steps.  Oh my!

- Sleep has been though but we're starting to get a breakthrough.

- She waves bye-bye now, waving her whole arm to do it.  Completely melts my heart when she waves bye-bye when I leave for work (which I have 7 work days left by the way!).

- She's apparently been able to clap for a while but I didn't know that's what she's doing when she's waving both arms.  But while watching Wheel of Fortune one night I clapped & said "yeah" & she started "clapping".  Her hands don't hit together but I'm sure she'll get there.

- She jibber-jabbers A LOT!  And blows raspberries even more!

- She has teeth!  Two actually.  It's the 2 bottom ones but they aren't completely through yet.  As far as I can tell that's all for the moment but she doesn't exactly enjoy me prying her mouth open to take a look at her gums.

December - How it's changed for me

December 2006 - We decided to start trying to have a baby.

December 2007 - Baby #1 was due but had been lost in May.  It was a difficult month.

December 2008 - Baby #3 was due but had been lost in April.  It was even more difficult than the year before.

December 2009 - Shaylin was on her way & my belly was getting huge.  It was a month of hope & excitement for what was to come.

December 2010 - Shaylin is here & I am so excited to celebrate Christmas with her.

I'm still around

I've been wanting to blog about different things.  Even started 2 posts that I have yet to finish.  I just haven't had the time.  Working 22 1/2 hours a week isn't a lot but it has definitely made my life busier.  So at some point I'll try to catch up.

But for now I'm getting ready for our vacation to NC to spend Thanksgiving with my family.  It'll be Shaylin's first plane ride & her first time to meet a lot of relatives.  I used to think it was stressful packing for a long trip when it was just me & Jeremy.  Adding a baby is a whole 'nother ball game!

Java Roast

Tonight I tried another roast recipe in the crockpot.  Yes, I know I said I probably wouldn't make a meal like this while working but I've been dying to try this one.  So instead of cooking on low like I usually do I cooked it on high.

1 rump roast (3-4 lbs.)
1 onion (I used half; it's all I had), sliced in big chunks
1 red bell pepper, sliced in big chunks
8 oz. sliced mushrooms (I didn't have any so I didn't use them)
3/4 cup brewed coffee
1 T Worcestershire sauce
3 T red wine vinegar
1 t garlic powder
1/2 t salt
1/4 t black pepper
4 oz. cream cheese (to add later)

Put veggies in first, then top with roast. 
Add coffee, followed by Worcestershire sauce & red wine vinegar.  Sprinkle seasonings on top.
Cover & cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.
Carefully remove roast.  Slice cream cheese & stir.  Turn heat up to high to help melt & break it up.  Serve over meat.

Oh my goodness!  This was so yummy & moist.  And if you didn't put in the coffee yourself you'd never know it was in there.  I will definitely make this again, except next time I want to cook it on low.  I've cooked things both on high & low & low always seems to prevent over-cooking.

Sweet Mustard Roast

I haven't posted any recipes in a while.  So here's what I'm making today.

1 roast (3-4 lbs.)
1/3 cup molasses
1/3 cup dijon mustard
2 T white vinegar
1 t garlic powder


Place roast in crock pot.  Top w/ remaining ingredients.  Flip roast a few times till well coated.  Cover & cook on low for 6-8 hours.

I've made this before & loved it.  I gave a hint of a sweet taste to the meat.  Best of all it's so easy to put together.  Gotta love that!

I'm making it with mashed potatoes & green bean casserole.  Since I may not want to cook too many meals that are time consuming while I'm working I thought I should do it today.

Working Momma

I adore being a stay at home mom.  It's all I ever wanted to do.  A career meant nothing to me.  And I had a great job before Shaylin was born.  For over 7 years I worked in an insurance office & pretty much ran the office without the title of agent.  Or the paycheck.  But when I left the week before Shaylin was born I wasn't sad & had no intention of ever going back to the workplace ever again. 

Well, never say never.

A couple weeks ago my former boss emailed me asking if I'd be willing to come in part-time to fill in while his main support staff is out of the country.  It would be for 7 weeks.  So I talked to my mother-in-law to see if she'd be willing to watch Shaylin in the mornings & she agreed.  I would have started today but my mother-in-law is on her way back from visiting some of her other grandkids so I will start tomorrow.

What also helps is we will be going to NC for Thanksgiving so it takes out a whole week right in the middle of this commitment so I really will only work a total of 6 weeks.  My hours will be 8:30 to 1:00 so with that & driving time it'll have me away from Shaylin for about 5 hours a day.

So far I'm ok.  I haven't cried . . . yet.  I haven't had guilt . . . yet.  But I know it's going to come.  What helps me is knowing that it's not for very long & we could definitely use the extra money with our NC trip coming up & Christmas right after.

Another positive I thought of is that it will help give me more empathy for other moms that work all the time.  Not that I don't feel for them.  But I don't really know how they feel on a day to day basis when they have to leave their babies behind knowing they would rather spend as much time with them as they can.  This will give me a small taste of what they go through.

I've already asked Shaylin to not do anything new while she's away from me.  She has to save it for when we come home.  I feel a greater desire to spend quality time with her today. 

So on that note . . .