Mommy and Me

This weekend was a blast! Ryan was out-of-town once again, for work. He was in Jackson with the Gov. you may have seen the Gov. on Meet the Press Sunday morning from Jackson. Anyway, that meant that it was just Andrew and me for the weekend. I had a stressful week last week and another to come. My new job switch is proving to be a lot of work, not just because I have to phsyically move offices, but I have clean out my old files and now tackle a whole new set of files. (FYI, lawyers engage in tons of paperwork). So, I was somewhat upset when I realized that because I had to watch Andrew all weekend by myself there would be no working. However, sometimes we get exactly what we need.

Andrew and I went to Superday on Saturday, and we partook in a number of fun activities: shopping for sandles for him, walking, playing in the grass, malt making and eating, pizza dinner with friends, phone talking with family, and playing with Penny. Andrew is also still enthralled with all his new toys from his Birthday. This weekend also really opened my eyes to the fact that Andy and I can really communicate now and enjoy each other's company. When Ryan is here we mostly talk with each other, our adult serious talk, while we care for Andrew. But, without an adult in site to talk to I had to talk to Andy. Now, with his expansive vocabulary of dog, hat, mama, and dada you would think this would be quite the boring conversation. But, au contraire! He is communicating now quite effectively with body language and facial expression. So, we had many conversations full of smiles, laughter, clapping, pointing and squealing with delight. Not, to mention scrunched noses, head shakes indicating No, and even a few tears. All the exploring and sunshine really wore us out, so we were early to bed and late to rise. I also got to dress him in his cute overalls that his aunt in Germany made for him. (Ryan thinks they make him look like a girl). Overall, this weekend was the least stressful and most rewarding I have had in a long time! Thanks, Andy for such a great time!

Andrew's 1st Birthday!

This past Saturday we celebrated Andrew's 1st Birthday. He will officially be one on Wednesday the 25th. He had a lot of fun at his party. He was so excited with each present and card. He loved the chocolate cake and as we sang Happy Birthday it was all I could do to hold back the tears. I just can't believe how fast he growing. It has been the best year of my life being a mom and seeing him learn and grow, I know this next year will be even better! Happy Birthday to my little Roo!

New Job

I have just accepted a new position in my office. I will now be representing the Department of Family Services which will include child support enforcement, terminations of parental rights, child welfare cases, and any legal issues which may arise from this state agency. I am very excited about this new opportunity especially since it will mean more litigation, which is what I truly enjoy. However, acceptance of this new position is not without trepidation, while I know I can do it change is always difficult and this position will definitely mean more travel around the state and less time with my family. So, here I am again struggling with this balance. I feel that this is a good decision for my career, but whether it will be good for my family is yet to be seen. Here's hoping!

Daddy's Day

Sunday was Father's Day, the first for my husband. I tried to make it nice by making breakfast, lunch and dinner and generally trying to give him a break. But, his friend could only come to help with the yard that day, so he ended up doing a lot of yard work and working really hard on Father's Day. Not only that but when I attempted to grill chicken for dinner I dropped his chicken breast on the ground. He then had to go to the store for more chicken and I asked if he would just do the grilling since I am terribly unskilled with the grill, he agreed. So, unfortunately my husband's first Father's Day was not terribly memorable or relaxing, but here are a few pictures of him as a dad this year which I think show that he has really come into his own as a new Father and doesn't need a special day to celebrate it because he celebrates being a dad each day with our son. Thanks sweetie, for being such a wonderful daddy!

Resourcefulness

It is amazing to me how resourceful I have become since becoming a mom. The amount of multi-tasking blows my mind sometimes. I call family and friends in the car on the way to and from the baby sitter's house. I run errands, play with the dog and pick up the house over my lunch hour. I make my to-do lists at work. I purchase most things over the internet to save a trip to the store. I go shopping for myself on business trips, because then I can actually try on clothes.

Last night my family and I went to Target. My darling son has started this phase (well at least I hope it is a phase) of screaming all the time. So, when I just couldn't handle the screaming anymore I went to the food aisle found some goldfish crackers ripped them open and started feeding him. It helped with the screaming. Of course we paid for the crackers, but until now I would not have dreamed of doing such a thing. But, motherhood will do that to you, send you to desperate measures that I refer to now as "resourcefulness."

Can't We All Just Get Along?

One thing I have learned since becoming a parent is that parenting styles are extremely different and there are huge debates between parents (mostly moms) regarding all kinds of issues with children. Breastfeeding; binkys; vaccinations; circumcision; bumper pads; co-sleeping; staying home; infant sign language; toilet training; brand of formula; starting solids; and the list goes on and on. Often these topics are the cause of heated debates between mothers. But, most often these topics bring certain disapproving looks, tone of voice or the infamous questions meant to be somehow disguised as "just questions" except anyone with a brain knows that these "questions" are really a dig on your parenting. For example, "you are using that brand of formula, hmmm?" or "wouldn't he take a pacifier?" or "why is he circumcised, are you Jewish?" When confronted with these "questions" it takes every fiber of your being not to retort with what you really want to say, such as, "you really think what brand of formula matters, at least my kid doesn't eat his boogers!" or "at least my 3 year old isn't running around with a binky in his mouth!" etc. Why can't we just agree to disagree and not care so much about what other parents choose to do with their children? Unless what they are doing is abusive it really isn't our place to say what is right or wrong. We should all parent the way we see fit and move on.

Certainly, I have been guilty of judging other moms as well, but I try at the very least to keep it to myself or only discuss it with my husband. It isn't my place to make comments directly to the other mom. Therefore, I hereby make a pledge to stop the judging and start supporting other mothers in their parenting. Becoming a mom for the first time is very challenging and we should be there for each other as mothers, no matter what our parenting style is. So, next time you have a strong opinion, just keep it to yourself and don't try to disguise your disdain in the form of a question, you aren't fooling anyone.

Working Mother

The phrase "working mother" is redundant. ~ Jane Sellman

Can we working mothers really have it all? This is the question which most quantifies my life at this point in time. I am sure trying to make it work. I work full-time as an attorney AND as a mother to my little 11 month old son, Andrew.

I recently read the fiction novel "I Don't Know How She Does It" and I couldn't believe how much in it truly resonated. The central theme of the book being, can working mothers really have it all? It is a fun, fast read and I recommend it. But, the part that continues to haunt me about the story was that the conclusion was, no. We can't be good mothers and wives and workaholics at the same time. Now, granted I would not put myself in the "workaholic" category. I don't often work more than 40 hours per week. But, I still can't help wondering if my story is the same and the answer is, no.

So, join me on my first blog experience as I discuss the daily challenges of mommyhood, family, and career.