It seems like every woman who has ever been pregnant can recall a handful of crazy dreams about all things impending motherhood. They’ve dreamt about giving birth to toddler-sized babies who come out fully dressed and speaking in sentences, they’ve dreamt about nursing kittens, they’ve dreamt about giving birth while co-piloting in a twin-engine plane with Hugh Jackman. (Okay, I made that last one up, but it’s probably happened to someone.) I’m sure I’ve had some crazy pregnancy dreams along the way, but I can’t remember anything specific. What have I been dreaming about, though? Work. Yay.
Read the rest of this entry

I go on maternity leave next Monday, and although I can’t help thinking of it as a (glorious, hard-earned, much deserved) break, I know, intellectually, that I’ll have plenty to do while I’m not working. More than plenty, in fact, and none of it involves afternoons spent sipping lemonade or getting a foot massage or lovingly monogramming a stack of burp cloths as high as the moon. Nope, for however long I have off before the baby comes, all of that “extra” (HA) time will be spent preparing for the baby by finally taking care of things I feel like I should have dealt with months ago. Something tells me this isn’t unusual for working women who already have at least one child at home, but that doesn’t mean I’m not still frustrated with myself.
Read the rest of this entry

My jobs are all deadline dependent. If I miss deadlines, I miss production windows, I mess up someone else’s schedule down the line, and I disappoint clients who then might not hire me for future jobs. I’m lucky I don’t have any bosses breathing down my neck on a daily basis, but those deadlines, man…they’re not joking around.
Read the rest of this entry

Money is always a touchy subject, but it’s even touchier when you compare apples to apples–i.e., what your peer coworkers are making–instead of the apples-to-oranges guessing you might do of the doctor/lawyer-income couple down the block.
Read the rest of this entry

When we were in Utah visiting my parents a few months ago, we drove by a Walmart and, apropos of nothing, my three-year-old son announced proudly, “That’s where my mom works!” I don’t know where that came from (kid hasn’t been to a Walmart in his life), and although it was probably just a random comment, it did make me wonder if he has any idea what I do all day while he’s at daycare.
Read the rest of this entry

My husband had three job interviews last week, and although no official offers have been put on the table yet, let’s just pretend everyone thinks he’s as wonderful and accomplished as I do and that in the next few days he’ll have his pick of positions.

Aaaaahhhh. So that’s what it feels like to breathe again.
Read the rest of this entry

I’ve read everything anyone anywhere has ever said about working from home.

“Create a dedicated office space!”

“Get dressed every day!”

“Take a shower!”

“Put on makeup!”

“Get out and talk to real adult people, even if it’s just the cashier at the Starbucks drive-thru!” (No offense to cashiers at Starbucks drive-thrus. You make the world go ’round.)

It’s funny that so many of these Helpful Tips are hygiene related (funny cuz it’s true) and that, together, they make us WAHMs out to be a bunch of unkempt cavewomen who, save for the civilizing grace of the revered drive-thru cashier (and her gift of caffeine), are assumed to be perpetually one eight-hour shift away from losing our ability to walk upright and speak in full sentences.
Read the rest of this entry

I have a hard time letting people help me, but lately I’ve been fantasizing about what it would be like to have a personal assistant I could delegate all my less-than-desirable tasks to.

A basic list of responsibilities might look like this:
Read the rest of this entry

In the comments to this post about career ambition (and my near-complete lack thereof), WIM reader Elaine asked this question:

How do you measure success at home? Other than seeing the kids and spending time with them, where is the satisfaction?

GREAT question. TOUGH answers.
Read the rest of this entry

It’s a touchy subject, but I’m going to try to write about it in a non-judgey, not-telling-you-what-to-do, just-thinking-aloud type of way.

Say you’re unemployed. Say you’ve been unemployed for not days or weeks but months, and maybe even more than a year. You’re diligent about applying for positions, you follow up, you wear your shiniest shoes to interviews but still can’t find work. It sucks. It sucks HARD. It’s a hit on your self-esteem, it insults all the effort you put into school and at previous jobs, and it’s especially terrifying if you have a family to support and don’t know where you’re going to get the money to pay for groceries.

It’s a down economy, times are tough, unemployment is rampant, and yet…at what point do you stop blaming the market and accept that the problem might actually be…you? I’m not talking about not being worthy of a job or not a competent and quality employee. I’m talking about the ways in which you might be limiting yourself, say by narrowing the definition of What You’re Good At and/or What You Can Do.
Read the rest of this entry