This is the first post in a series of stories on working moms. While I’m excited for the amazing variety of women that have been interviewed for this project, I know it isn’t a drop in the bucket of the stories of working mothers. Hopefully there is something in at least one of the stories that resonates with readers. However, the best story is YOUR story and I’d love to hear it. Keep the conversation going in the comments and on social media using #wellcraftedworkingmoms. A huge thank you to the women who volunteered to share their stories, Mary Boyden of Mamma Bear Magazine for her photography and Madeline Roosevelt for hair and makeup!
Why post about working moms?
Because I said so. That works, right? No, well, it doesn’t for my toddler either. So, here it goes:
A few years back, after several upsetting and tiresome months, I decided that I was spending too much time and effort on things that really didn’t matter. In that low period of my life I decided that I needed to focus. I wanted to live a life of purpose. In that time I really examined each area in my life in which I spend my time, money, and energy to see if it helped me live my life with more purpose. Those items that didn’t fit my goals got removed (when possible) or adjusted to fit better within my goals. This blog was one of the items that needed to be adjusted from something that was just a hobby I enjoyed to a place of purpose.
Over the past few years, my mission within my blog is to inspire, educate and encourage readers to take joy in the everyday and celebrate the many moments that make life a party. I believe whole-heartedly that we should celebrate the moments of the every day. All of this is to lead in to why I am doing a series on working mothers…
Highlighting the triumphs and trials of working mothers, for me, is a way of celebrating the incredible journey that I and many other mothers are going through. This is not a series to say one way of being a mom is better than any other way. I believe the best thing a mother can do for her children is to decide what is the best situation for her family, whether it be to work or to stay home.
Series Intro
Sometime after going back to work after my short maternity leave with my second child I decided that I wanted to hear what working was like for other mothers. I put out a volunteer request and had several mothers sign up to share their story and pose for photos.
Mothers are often the last to get ready for the day and are typically the ones behind the camera. I wanted to make these women feel pampered a bit and receive some great photos of themselves, so I contacted Mary Boyden of Momma Bear Magazine to help me host a photoshoot to feature the women. Hair and makeup pro Madeline Roosevelt volunteered her services to really make these mommas feel as beautiful as they are! (Check out a video made from behind the scenes at the shoot!)
Nearly everyone of the volunteers were able to make it to a day of photos, food, and chatting with other working mothers. Over the past month or so I’ve been collecting interviews with each of the women, including those who were unable to attend the photoshoot. I cannot even begin to say how joyful this whole process has been. I’m super excited to share these stories with you between now and Mother’s Day.
I’ll post stories of working mothers every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from now until Mother’s Day 2016. In between those posts you can look forward to posts that will hopefully make the balancing act of life a tad easier for those who are parents and who are not.
Open Your Eyes!
I teased this series with graphics saying “Open Your Eyes” because I truly hope that this series helps open the eyes of those who read it. If becoming a mother wasn’t hard enough, one thing that many mothers experience when moving into this new phase of life is that there is a lot of judgement and “shoulds” that happen from other mothers, non-parents, friends, family, complete strangers… you get the point. While the saying goes “it takes a village” for good reason, often we need that village to be one of support rather than unsolicited advice.
These stories will hopefully show that new mother who loves her career that there is someone out there experiencing a similar situation. The mother of young children struggling with balancing her home and work responsibilities may know after reading these stories that she is not alone. The non-parent who happens upon these stories may open her eyes to more of what her co-worker with children deals with each day. I hope that these stories resonate with people. However, at the lack of that, they are entertaining and moving stories worth reading.
Missy Maki, one of the working moms I interviewed, said it best:
My big thing about being a working mom is that it is not easy for anyone. We all have to scotch tape and safety pin things together at one time or another, and it’s okay. We need to smile at each other, to wink at each other when our kid is losing their shit at Safeway. We need to swipe our debit card when another moms Oregon Trail card is declined. It is our responsibility to step up, smile, help, and make it clear that we all know it is hard, and offer helping hands to each other.
Follow Along & Join the Conversation
I’m excited to be posting these stories of working mothers every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from now until Mother’s Day 2016. I’d love to hear how you enjoy the series and about your stories of working in motherhood. Share with me via Instagram, Twitter or Facebook. Use the hashtag #wellcraftedworkingmoms so I, and others who are following, may see your story as well!
