Working Parents Round-Up: Weighing in the new year

Everyone is talking about weighing at the moment.

It’s diet this, diet that, fitness this, and fitness that; and it’s driving me nuts. I like cake, my kids like it, so why can’t you all just leave me in peace to eat it? This lady just doesn’t do New Year resolutions for anything; not anymore. I am too much of a chicken, and can’t bear the feeling I will get when I inevitably fail….

Despite my annoyance of all things diet and fitness, this scales obsessed atmosphere, coupled with a few superb posts that I have read this month, gave me an idea for this round-up. There is another kind of weighing involved in being a working parenting; the management of our working lives along side that of our family ones. Sometimes the scales are almost heaving under the weight of everything that we have to cram in to be the best we can be; in both worlds.

Cambridge Mummy helped inspire this post on the working parents balancing act. Sometimes its just not possible to get these two parts of our lives nicely compartmentalised. She has invited four lovely ladies to discuss their experiences of the new phenomenon that is work-life merging. The post I have linked to here is about Jane from Northern Mum‘s juggling act with her work, and her kids. A truly knackering read. If possible, Mother’s Always Right’s post about balance in her working life is even more exhausting. I genuinely have no idea how she manages to get up at 4am, yet only go to bed at 11pm. I am not sure I couldn’t speak nevermind present a breakfast radio show after that. Ghostwritermummy even manages to explain the merging of her work-life balance through pictures, showing us all how the teacher in her is turning her home into a classroom as she tackles trying to be a work at home mum. Family Friendly Working have written a post on turning a collectable hobby into an income, so perhaps that’s the solution to finding the balance; and you are even doing something that you love in this case, one hopes!

Chez Mummy has written a great post in the form of a letter to her children about how she is striving to work, and be the mother than she wants to be for them; she has made many changes and continues to do so for her children. It’s Misty…Seriously is at the start of her journey it seems, and also discussing change. She has written a loving post on her move from being a stay at home mum to Princess to going back to work, which she did this week. I hope it went well.

A Working Mum also give us a timely reminder that when we are at work, trying to create that invisible balance, there are some things that we can do that are totally impossible when the kids are about; so perhaps that offer of redundancy isn’t so tempting after all? Mum of Three World also reminds us how important work is to our self-confidence. She has written a rather poignant post about her struggle to now find her place in the working world after some knock-backs in her current job. She is now looking for advice what to do next as she feels unable to progress where she is, but confidence has ebbed away in her time at her current employer.

I know many of you try and achieve the balance in your life through becoming a freelancer, so Business Plus Baby‘s post on how to make more money as one should offer some good tips.

As for my work life balance, it’s still a bit dodgy; its got so bad I am writing poems on when to start Potty Training at 1am; is this a good thing? Probably not. However, I did still find time to bring in the new year with a bit of Irish-dancing influenced thrash metal with my son, so it can’t be all bad, can it?

About Helen Neale

Helen is the editor of the working parents round up, a freelance writer and owner of personalised children's chart business, KiddyCharts. She was a business analyst, and then a tweed-skirted school librarian as she tried to find work that fitted in with the demands of motherhood. Mummy's Little Stars is where you will find her sometimes funny musings about life as a working parent, and mum to some over exuberant small people. She has only been blogging since January 2012, so go gentle with her; she might break. You can find Helen on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn; where she probably hangs out a bit too much.