Until you have a kid, you really don't know the happiness they bring. I used to equate having a child to having a dog - definitely NOTHING like that! So as I meander through life, having a child has brought new and exciting things to life that I would have never thought of before.
Have you ever smelled cauliflower? According to my son, it is indeed a flower and you must smell it and not eat it.
Do you remember learning to swim? It's not very easy, but to a child, it's one of the most freeing experiences. "I can do it all by myself, mommy" and "That was easy, mommy" fly from my son's mouth.
What are all those things in the sky? I never paid attention, but now I do. Apparently there's a Virgin Atlantic flight every day at the same time that happens to pass over our house. "Look mommy, a plane is flying in the sky."
For some reason, it seems that since my son was born a lot of people in my life have changed -- for the better. His personality seems to bring out the best in others, including myself.
Despite the challenges of raising a toddler, at the end of the day, life is good - and it can't get any better than that.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Monday, June 11, 2007
Fighting with a Toddler
So, not only was the Sopranos series finale a total let down, but I had to fight with my toddler about everything this morning. Despite doing what all the "experts" advise to reduce toddler tantrums and give my child a sense of independence by giving him various choices to make in the mornings, I ended up fighting tooth and nail with my angelic(?) toddler.
He greeted me this morning with a smile. Ahhh... enough to warm the heart of any mother. Then, he picked out his clothes. We walk into my bedroom as I try to get him ready and myself ready (all while my husband also frantically tried to get dressed himself). Thinking it was a good idea, I offer "Do you want to turn on the light?" "NO, I don't want to turn on the light, mommy!" OK, I thought to myself. Whatever, I'll turn it on. You would've thought that I started World War IV! So, I reluctantly turn off the light to keep the peace.
I moved on to changing diaper, getting him dressed and the like. More fighting...Diaper vs. Pull-up. Then as I put on the shirt that he picked out -- another battle. He's ripping off the shirt as I put it on. Frustrated and angry (I am sooooooo sick of fighting), I placed him in timeout. How do you get them to sit still?? Yet another fight.
Today is swim lessons, I just hope it's not going to be yet another battle. I pre-warned him that we would be swimming. We shall see the results!
Off to the battlefield. Who's with me??
He greeted me this morning with a smile. Ahhh... enough to warm the heart of any mother. Then, he picked out his clothes. We walk into my bedroom as I try to get him ready and myself ready (all while my husband also frantically tried to get dressed himself). Thinking it was a good idea, I offer "Do you want to turn on the light?" "NO, I don't want to turn on the light, mommy!" OK, I thought to myself. Whatever, I'll turn it on. You would've thought that I started World War IV! So, I reluctantly turn off the light to keep the peace.
I moved on to changing diaper, getting him dressed and the like. More fighting...Diaper vs. Pull-up. Then as I put on the shirt that he picked out -- another battle. He's ripping off the shirt as I put it on. Frustrated and angry (I am sooooooo sick of fighting), I placed him in timeout. How do you get them to sit still?? Yet another fight.
Today is swim lessons, I just hope it's not going to be yet another battle. I pre-warned him that we would be swimming. We shall see the results!
Off to the battlefield. Who's with me??
Saturday, June 9, 2007
Thank God for Weekends!
The weekend can't come soon enough. With a child ill the past two days, all those things you mean to do get put on hold and you roll with the punches. To top it off, the husband is working on a project that requires a lot of his attention, so he's been working a lot - we know what that means? No breaks for me!
Despite having to take the last two days off work, I still managed to do some work from home as to not deplete my vacation time sitting at home, but actually having a vacation. We actually do have a vacation planned, but it took lots of poking and prodding on my part. We're heading to Costa Rica for 4 days. Lucky for me, my mother-in-law can come stay while we are away and we can actually enjoy a quiet breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as sleeping in and well... just some time alone is quite valuable these days.
As a working mom I have come up with some rather innovative dinners (that does not necessisarily mean healthy, but I try) that I can prepare in about 20 minutes (move over Rachael Ray!). One dish that got rave reviews from my husband (and myself) was something I kind of just threw together and I wanted to share.
Buffalo Chicken Wraps
7 - Boneless Buffalo Chicken Strips
salad in a bag
matchstick carrotts (already cut!)
celery (already cut!)
Spinach wraps
Ranch dressing (or Blue Cheese)
Cook strips as directed (approx. 17 min). When ready, cut chicken into strips and assemble the wrap. This made four wraps - we had it for dinner and then we each had lunch the next day.
Despite having to take the last two days off work, I still managed to do some work from home as to not deplete my vacation time sitting at home, but actually having a vacation. We actually do have a vacation planned, but it took lots of poking and prodding on my part. We're heading to Costa Rica for 4 days. Lucky for me, my mother-in-law can come stay while we are away and we can actually enjoy a quiet breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as sleeping in and well... just some time alone is quite valuable these days.
As a working mom I have come up with some rather innovative dinners (that does not necessisarily mean healthy, but I try) that I can prepare in about 20 minutes (move over Rachael Ray!). One dish that got rave reviews from my husband (and myself) was something I kind of just threw together and I wanted to share.
Buffalo Chicken Wraps
7 - Boneless Buffalo Chicken Strips
salad in a bag
matchstick carrotts (already cut!)
celery (already cut!)
Spinach wraps
Ranch dressing (or Blue Cheese)
Cook strips as directed (approx. 17 min). When ready, cut chicken into strips and assemble the wrap. This made four wraps - we had it for dinner and then we each had lunch the next day.
Friday, June 8, 2007
Welcome to the Blog for Working Moms!
Welcome. Welcome. Welcome.
As the inaugeral posting to my blog, I wanted to share why I wanted to create a blog and what I hope to offer my audience.
In essence, I found that being a mom is not the easiest job in the world, but it certainly has it's bonuses! But, being a working mom in particular is challenging. Not only do you struggle every day wondering if you've made the right choices for your child, but you struggle with a "new you."
I was once very career minded and found myself at a crossroads once my son was born. How do you manage to fulfill yourself career-wise while also the needs of your family? Ahhh -- the guilt!! How do you make sure your child is taken care of without breaking the bank? How do you juggle home time with work time? It's often hard to not take work home...but you definitely hate to interfere with your already short time to spend - so ya gotta make it quality. Oh yeah - how do you do that too? I ended up switching from a career where everything was due yesterday and I had zero flexibility to a job where I have more flexibility and the home and work balance is often equal. Hard to find?? Absolutely! I took a pay cut to find it. It was the best move I made.
Let's face it - us girls do it all!!
When you become a mother, you also take on the role as event planner, scheduler, logistics coordinator, healthcare surrogate, and financial advisor. This is in addition to your already established roles of chef, cleaning lady, etc. Now, don't get me wrong, my husband is very helpful around the house and with my son, but somehow I still end up with quite a workload.
This blog will tell you my tales as a working mother. Things that help me deal with the day-to-day ups and downs and ways to keep my sanity - whether it's quick dinner receipes, ways to convince a toddler to cooperate (I'm still learning!), or just ways that I juggle home and a career.
I'm bound to help someone out there or perhaps someone out there can help me!
As the inaugeral posting to my blog, I wanted to share why I wanted to create a blog and what I hope to offer my audience.
In essence, I found that being a mom is not the easiest job in the world, but it certainly has it's bonuses! But, being a working mom in particular is challenging. Not only do you struggle every day wondering if you've made the right choices for your child, but you struggle with a "new you."
I was once very career minded and found myself at a crossroads once my son was born. How do you manage to fulfill yourself career-wise while also the needs of your family? Ahhh -- the guilt!! How do you make sure your child is taken care of without breaking the bank? How do you juggle home time with work time? It's often hard to not take work home...but you definitely hate to interfere with your already short time to spend - so ya gotta make it quality. Oh yeah - how do you do that too? I ended up switching from a career where everything was due yesterday and I had zero flexibility to a job where I have more flexibility and the home and work balance is often equal. Hard to find?? Absolutely! I took a pay cut to find it. It was the best move I made.
Let's face it - us girls do it all!!
When you become a mother, you also take on the role as event planner, scheduler, logistics coordinator, healthcare surrogate, and financial advisor. This is in addition to your already established roles of chef, cleaning lady, etc. Now, don't get me wrong, my husband is very helpful around the house and with my son, but somehow I still end up with quite a workload.
This blog will tell you my tales as a working mother. Things that help me deal with the day-to-day ups and downs and ways to keep my sanity - whether it's quick dinner receipes, ways to convince a toddler to cooperate (I'm still learning!), or just ways that I juggle home and a career.
I'm bound to help someone out there or perhaps someone out there can help me!
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