Member Articles

4.) Don't ask, just do. This tip will not work for everyone because it involves having the ability to work from home, which I do.  Another mistake I made when returning to work was asking if I could leave 15 minutes earlier than I was used to.  This question led my boss into a rant about how much he loathed flex-time, working-from-home mothers etc.  I was so angry.  That's not what I had asked for or even mentioned, however after calming down I realized that this was his defense mechanism.  There are three other child-bearing-age women in his department.  If he started allowing me to vary my schedule, he would have to do it for everyone eventually. 

Then I got smart.  When I want to work from home to spend more time with the baby I simply say "I'm working from home on X day."  I don't say why, I don't say anything.  I just make it as easy as possible for anyone at work to get a hold of me and schedule my day at home the way I like.  The same goes here for doctor's appointments or when the baby is sick -- I don't explain WHY, I just take the time I need.  They don't need to know who the appointment is for or who is sick.

5.)  Stay organized. This was the hardest thing for me to learn, but also the most usefull.  To enjoy spending time with your child when you are in the office most of the day you need to make use of every moment that the child is asleep.  For me, my day looks like this:

Be sure to make time for your other family members, too, or things will just fall apart.  We have a weekly date night where we get a babysitter after the baby goes down.  It's really difficult sometimes to do when we are tired or have other things to think about it, but it is TOTALLY worth it.  You need to get away sometimes, even if you work full-time.

I hope these tips are useful for you!  Good luck!