"I can't get this door to close!" Or... "How I Decided to Go Back to Work."

Have you ever heard the saying, "If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans?" As a natural-born, type-A planner, I try to ignore this thought as much as my life allows. Surely God approves of my beautiful lists written in color-coordinated ink and menus that bring me sanity throughout each busy week. Surely.  And surely when my husband and I have worked out a timeline of how long I'd be a stay-at-home-mom, that was approved as well...right?

But then I had to go and open my big mouth. And a new door opened and no matter how hard I apparently tried to shut it, other plans had been orchestrated for me.

Let me back up.

Last spring, in the weekly newsletter for my daughter's school, I read a "farewell" from the school to a teacher who was moving and would no longer be teaching there the coming year. I was certified to teach her position, so it caught my eye.

Then curiosity killed the cat. Or in my case, got me a job.  The next time I saw the principal, I very casually asked if the position was full or part-time.  Full, he said. Ok, great, I said. Not interested. Peace out.

Then a month later, when I was picking my girls up from summer camp at the same school, the principal was waiting outside at pick-up.  He approached me and said there had been some changes in the needs of the school and the position was going to be part-time. Was that of interest to me? Well, crap.  I guess I'd have to think about it. I'll think about it and call you...

I didn't cal him.

Two weeks passed. He called me. They were interviewing other candidates and thought I might like to come in on the same day. um. This was NOT in my agenda, nor my scope and sequence for the summer. Think about it, he said. Let me know by Friday.

At this point, I had to really think about it. Truth is, it had been on my mind since I heard it was part time but I just was too indecisive to make a decision. And I kept convincing myself that with our "out of the blue" move, and upcoming trips it would all just be too hectic for my linear brain.  But now. They seem to want me. What part of that wouldn't feel enticing? Two years out of that line of work and still seeming so desirable to an employer?  It just seemed like too good of an opportunity to dust off my skills.  I called him back.

After much discussion with my husband, we decided I would go to the interview, put my best foot forward, all the while being very transparent about our needs and the value on work life balance.  I basically interviewed my very best, followed up with a few gentle demands, and then said, "I totally understand if I'm asking too much and you decide another candidate is a better fit." They went with me.

It wasn't until a few weeks later, when I was being introduced to the other staff members, that I realized how much they were on to me and my subtle resistance but just seemed to feel that it was right, and it would all work out.  They showed me a great amount of Grace in the process. One of the administrators told the staff, "She told us she had a vacation that she couldn't change in August, but we want her here much longer than that so we made it work." Amazing. Not something you stumble into everyday (which is perfect considering my entry was indeed not the most gracious).

That's the long and the short of it. So now we are adjusting the the chaos of the mornings and families all across the world do every day. But I get to commute with my girls which is kind of fun an kind of hectic but we're making it work. Then we come home and race through lunch and my little guy has a string of meltdowns because his nap should have started 30 minutes ago. But in all the chaos, there is a great deal of balance. Something that apparently, no amount of planning or list-writing could I have figured out on my own.

Where have you BEEN, Mama?

Well, a little thing happened this summer where all at once, we unexpectedly decided to move, I was offered an opportunity to teach part time in a "would be so silly to pass up" kind of situation...oh, and all of this was going to happen in the same 2 week span that we had a long standing vacation planned that couldn't be moved.  So...I disappeared a bit from the Mama's Blue Binder World and put my blinders on to G.S.D.

We made it!  I spent the entire month of July, one nap-time at a time, slowly packing up our house and getting ready for the move.  Living in boxes for an extended period of time was kind of my own personal hell, so we were 90% out of boxes within 3 DAYS after moving into our new house.  They just had to be gone.  The other 10% are hiding in a spare closet, and while they are nagging at my brain, my eyes don't have to see them all the time so it will probably be a bit before they are emptied. We seem to be getting along just fine without them.

The sun set on one chapter, but a new one has just begun.

The new job: just crazy.  I didn't really feel ready to go back to work - I was still embracing my ability to be home with my littles, (...and honestly looking forward to the fact that two of them would be in school a few hours each day this year.  One kid?! For multiple hours a day?! Being so used to three, the possibilities seemed endless! )

But isn't that a question so many parents deal with all the time? Stay home and enjoy that gig, but fear being "irrelevant" once the time comes to reenter the workplace?  Maybe everyone doesn't feel that, but I certainly did. And then comes along this unicorn position thats part-time and as much as I tried to give them every opportunity to go with someone else, they wanted me! The 2-year stay at home mom! It was too perfect.

Family Vaca! These are my people.

So we moved.
We vacationed.
I went back to work for the first time in 2 years the day after we got back from vacation.

I just kept telling myself, "get through August...thats all you have to do...September will be the new normal."

So thanks for your patience.  The Binder is back.

Weekly Food Prep: Kids edition

Around this time last year, I had just finished some VERY important food prep...for my 5 days away from my kiddos! We were fortunate to have a couple of family members come in for the long weekend get-away, and I wanted to do whatever I could to make it easier for them to care for 3 children under the age of 4! I spent an afternoon doing my best to make their lives easier by making convenient the things that my kids love AND that are colorful (aka HEALTHY!)

Here's a snapshot of the foods that can be prepped on a Sunday afternoon, stored in the fridge, and last throughout the week for easy summer lunches at home or on the go!

Most weeks you can find these items prepped and ready to go on a Sunday so we don't have to waste our summer sunshine inside cooking and cutting everyday!

Watermelon, grapes, strawberries, blueberries, cucumbers, peppers, pasta, chicken, hardboiled "eggies," steamed broccoli, beans and carrots.