When I got the positive pregnancy test, I just assumed that nine months later, I would be living the stay at home mom life. That was what I knew. I couldn’t even fathom the alternative. But as doors continually slammed shut to make that happen, I was faced with the question all working moms face at some point: How can I be a good mother if I work? I truly believed for nine months that God’s will for me was to be a stay at home mom in the season of new motherhood but I ignored the call he had for me. The call for me that was so much harder for me. He was calling me to something higher than the ideas I had for myself and our family. ““For my thoughts are not your thoughts  neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts (Is 55:8-9 NIV).” Now, being a working mom or being a stay at home mom isn’t inherently better or harder than the other across...

A while back, I wrote a post on the number one thing not to say to a working mom, "I could never have someone else raise my kid." But that's only part of the things I've seen and heard. Because working moms are so busy and stretched thin, their voices aren't the predominant ones out there despite 64 percent of mothers with children under the age of 6 working outside the home. The reality of it is that a majority of mothers work. Here's some of what it's like: It means choosing your battles . You only have so much time in your day and you want to maximize the time you have with your family. It means things like cleaning, exercising, cooking, self-care, doing your hair and makeup religiously can and will fall by the wayside. It means coming to terms with picking what is more important each day: the attention-starved dog, the pile of laundry, the sink full of dishes or your unshaven legs. It means being forgotten. After so many times of declinin...

Oh, the mommy wars. Even though I'm a babywearing, birth choice-advocating, "breast is best" kind of mom, nothing irks me more in the scheme of mommy wars than the hate I see online for working moms. There's been times in my life I've had certain opinions about a group of people without ever having interacted with someone from that group. Then, when I befriended someone who held that opinion and I talked to them about it, my opinion changed. Sometimes, you don't know just how off your viewpoint is until you're confronted with the opposing one. I'm publishing this post out of love. I want to build up families who have two parents working. With this post, I want to give families who don't have two working parents the knowledge of how to interact with dual-parent working families. One thing is commonly said about working moms: "I would never have someone else raise my child." Me neither! Daycare does not raise my son. They're...

Warrior Working Women will be a regular feature here where I "interview" working women to find out how they manage their lives. This is inspired by how I don't know too many working moms in real life so get inspiration from! Everyone has different protips they can share about juggling everything and I'm excited to share those with you. if you want to nominate someone (or yourself) to be featured, contact me. First up is Kaitlyn, who blogs at Everyday Kate. She's mom to Ezra, who is about a month younger than my own son. My baby and I were recently pictured a few times in her recent post about babywearing! Kaitlyn and I went to the same youth group as teenagers. She started out as a work-from-home mom but she recently made the transition to working part time outside the home. She somehow manages to plan and make healthy meals for her family, blog and work! What "kind of mom" would you say you are? - Hmm, this is a difficult question to ...

Earlier this week, I posted five tips on how to handle your first day back at work after having a baby. But the first day is just that: one big hurdle to this season of life juggling being a new mom. It may seem like it will never get easier. Some seasons may be harder than others but eventually, you will find your groove. These are all resources I used when I was preparing to go back to work in August of 2017 after seven weeks of maternity leave. These all have great information and I've been able to build upon the things I learned from other online resources. Here's even more encouragement for that first nervewracking day back. Here's the Pinterest board I created while on maternity leave of meals that require almost no hands-on prep time in the kitchen. No need to order expensive takeout or spend your precious moments at home with a baby that's awake cooking dinner! This recipe is one of our favorites in particular and the leftovers go great on a salad t...

When I went back to work seven weeks postpartum, I was simultaneously filled with a sense of dread and of “Yahoo! I get to wear normal clothes again!” No matter the conflicting cocktail of postpartum emotions you’re experiencing upon your return back to work, undoubtedly, you’re probably wondering how you’re going to handle being a mom and your job. I learned that the first few weeks and months have to be taken one day at a time. Don’t focus on the week ahead, or the months ahead. Each day as a new working mom is a victory. That first day might be the hardest for you. It might not. But here’s some of my tried and true tips to getting over that first mountain of a day. 1. Enlist the help of a distraction. Before your first day, ask your mom, sister or close friend to be available to talk on the phone after you drop your baby off. Make one rule: you can talk about anything but the baby. On my first day back, I talked on the phone with my mom for my 25 minute commute. ...

Going back to work after baby is a huge adjustment when you just went through an adjustment just a few weeks ago! You have a few precious hours to soak up your baby in the evening, during the witching hours nonetheless. What’s key to your survival is meals that are filling, simple, don’t require a lot of  prep time and can give you leftovers so you don’t have to worry about lunches. You’ve got enough to think about so I’ve done the work for you. Each meal should make enough for two people to have for dinner one night and leftovers for lunch the next day. Sunday : Chili. I have my favorite technique but I never measure spices or make it the same way twice. I just dump. This recipe is similar but you can easily adapt chili to add any veggies you like. I rotate between using ground turkey and ground beef. Serve it over pasta or rice with cheese and other toppings. No matter how hard we try to finish a whole pot on our own, we always have to throw a serving or two away. We ca...