The Working Mother

If you wondered why there haven't been very many updates recently, it's because Vedant's mother is back at work! Thank God for family support - with Vedant's grandmother home to take care of him, I can focus all my attention from 8am to 7pm on work. Beyond those hours, I do have a bias toward hanging out with Vedant rather than work. I started at 60% for the month of April and have stepped it up to 80%, trying to take between 1-2 days per week off. "Trying" is the key word here :-) Given the nature of my job, it's hard to shut down for even a few hours, forget an entire day! As a result, my mother doesn't understand why I keep checking my blackberry on my "off day". For myself, I am just glad that on my "off day" I am at least allowed the luxury of not responding to work requests right away!

What's most interesting (or frustrating... depending on whether I'm having a good day or a bad day) is how everyone has an opinion to share about "working mothers". People ask me questions about my ability to focus, produce high-quality work, balance personal and professional life, hours at work, pursuing a career - traits that were never questioned prior to me becoming a mother. What is it about becoming a mother that changes everyone's belief that a woman can accomplish much at work? And why is the new father let off the hook? Is his life not transformed the same way mine is? Sure I have more un-outsourceable responsibilities :-) but he has to deal with similar distractions, lack of sleep and worse, getting only 1/10th of the attention his wife used to shower! That's a dramatic change...

Yes, things have changed! Having a baby is a life-changing situation, but it serves to strenghten and embolden, not weaken and discourage. We are determined to be successful professionally and personally. As I told a friend, there is no such thing as "work-life balance" at any given time - there are prolonged periods during which one is prioritized over the other. I hope to achieve that balance... in life. But for now, when I'm at work, I'm a professional, and when I'm home, I'm a homemaker. And Vedant will grow up knowing that it's not "either / or" for his mommy!