Day 24:
23 days in and I finally missed a day of writing. Exhaustion from all day cluster feeding, dreary weather, and not getting out of the house got to me. But after a fussy day, baby slept well and I was energized for day 24! I felt confident today, starting the day with a lunch with a friend. It was a cool fall day and we sat outside on the patio while Baby slept the entire time (this requires impeccable timing and self- imposed stress to ensure that baby will be fed, clean, and sleepy for the drive to the restaurant) so that I could enjoy a nice adult lunch conversation with another fellow boss mama. Relationships with other people in similar stages in life are so important. I always love lunch dates with this boss mama because she is so relatable and supportive. We both embrace that working mom life can be messy, but are always are striving to do better. This working mom also got a call from the assistant principal (your heart always skips a beat when the school or daycare number pops up, amirite?) to tell her that her son redirected a negative discussion into a positive one and I got to share her proud mama moment with her.
After lunch, running some quick errands, a surprise chat with our Chief Diversity Officer who is also a working mom- I was feeling accomplished, confident, like I could do anything. So, I braved taking all three kids out on my own- my daughter was performing at a halftime high school football game as part of a fun clinic she participated in. Again, I calculated precise timing of when I needed to feed baby, pick up the girls from school, make sure I found all the necessary items from the clinic almost a month ago ( where the hell was that hairbow?). It was all going swimmingly. We were early, baby was comfortably snuggled in his carrier that I was wearing, and all three kids were in good moods. What kind of alternate universe was this? Until I felt it… something warm was on my belly and seeping down my pants. It was a diaper explosion and it wasn’t minor. Nothing like a poop incident to crush your confidence. What I’ve learned from having two kids is that you have to learn to roll with the punches, so I sat there for the game in my poo stained jeans and confidently cheered on my eldest girl on a nice fall evening.
Positive Thought of the Day: Today is the International Day of the Girl. Its mission is “to help galvanize worldwide enthusiasm for goals to better girls’ lives, providing an opportunity for them to show leadership and reach their full potential.” I firmly believe it’s important for young girls to believe in themselves and be confident in their own skin, and have the confidence to become our future leaders. I am grateful that my children have extremely positive and incredibly strong female role models in their lives and hope this will foster strength in them to be good and do good.