The Climb

Yes, I just put a Miley Cyrus song in your head.  I'm sorry (not really).  No, I'm not a Miley fan, but the song sums up the past two years for me. 

I accepted a promotion to middle management at work.  With it came huge opportunities, and a lot to reevaluate.  I received support from many unexpected sources, in ways I unfortunately must admit I didn't always recognize at first.  I received one piece of advice from an experienced colleague of mine that I will never forget.  She told me the lessons I learn in my first year will stick with me throughout my entire career, and to write it all down because I will cherish it.  My first year was rough.  Most of it I did not want to write down, and regardless, I didn't have time.  But, I did start to make mental notes.  Whether afraid, excited, scared, proud, I would sometimes catch myself thinking "there's another one for the blog."

Climbing and running got me through the first year. I needed the adrenaline rush and I needed the sense of accomplishment, no matter how small.  Slowly, things fell into place, and I (and others) saw my plans come to fruition.  I learned who I could trust, and those people mean the world to me.  I started to think more about my next steps than about just keeping my head above water, which was really exciting.  I love having things to plan for, whether at work or in my personal life.  I also taught a graduate-level class in the fall of 2010.  Around that time my husband and I started talking the next step for our family.  We agreed to start trying for a baby in February because would be done teaching and I could time my maternity leave with our employer's holiday break and wouldn't fall quite as behind at work.  Well, after seven years of waiting, this baby was not about to wait any longer!  I went off birth control in January and found out I was pregnant in January!

Being pregnant has given me a lot to blog about.  During the past six months, I have experienced so many quirky, amazing things that have made me think "wow, THAT is something for the blog."  Of course, as I read other pregnancy blogs out there, I realize my experiences aren't all that unique.  I find myself identifying with others' sentiments, or thinking "yeah, I USED to think that too."  One thing I've realized is there aren't too many blogs out there about women who are proud to be mothers and work.  Having a career is hard.  Having a newborn, I can only imagine, will be infinitely harder.  Both at the same time?  I am excited, but I know I will need advice and inspiration.  There's even a blog called Confessions from a Working Mom.  I was really excited when I first found it, only to find that the author ultimately decided to stay at home.  Don't get me wrong, this is not about a soapbox.  It's about support.  I did find this list of working mom blogs that I will start to sift through.  I will continue to read, process, and write down as much as I can, and hopefully, the information I find will be useful to others too.