Day #1

6:00am Wake up
6:15am Maybe shower ~if I’m lucky~
7:00am Attempt to inhale my coffee before the house wakes up + check email + start the mental checklist of actionables that need to get done. Feed the dog.
7:30am Wake the tiny human, and with a heart full of love, I brace myself for the battles ahead
8:00am Make (by this I mean heat-up) breakfast + pack his school lunch + hope to find him clean socks somewhere + reheat my coffee 2x
8:30-9:00am Preschool drop off while navigating 2-3 tantrums about wearing a coat or not wearing a coat to school. Squeeze my tiny human and drive away terribly sad that I’m missing moments of his precious, fleeting, childhood. I live in a constant tension of wanting to spend every minute building memories and splashing in the creek, while knowing deep down that my cup fills up when I get to show up to work at MLD and use other giftings that make up the many facets of ME.
9:18am Log on. Reply to emails, set up all zoom calls, and reheat coffee for the 3rd time (this part is essential)

9:30am- 2:30pm I call this The Black Hole of Productivity while I have two free hands!! There’s no one more productive than a mom who has a 5 hour window to get 8 hours of work done. I’ll put money on that!!
2:30pm Preschool pick up. This is when I switch my brain from function mode to all things love and empathy and boogers. I’m convinced a mother’s ability to abruptly transition from pipelines and scoping quarterly projects, to knock knock jokes and jibber jabber should be in the record books or listed under superpowers somewhere.
2:31pm Limits are already being tested, but heart is still full of so much love. Log off for the time being and try to be right where I am.
Afternoon/Evening: Just try to keep him alive while facing the never-ending societal pressures of pinterest worthy crafts, homemade baked goods, 1000 hours outside, and absolutely, under no circumstance ever, should we allow screen time or our child will be ruined.
6:00pm-8:00pm Dinner, bathe the tiny human, kiss him goodnight and thank the stars I get to be his mom. Take a deep exhale. I love him so so much.
9:00pm-11:00pm Open computer and try to catch up from the time I missed. Stay up way too late. Prep for the meetings tomorrow.

Day #2:

5:57am Tiny human wakes up with a fever.

6:01am Set up OOO email, and log off. Brace myself for a week of probably getting sick myself.

Some days we are on top of the world from productivity. We nail the pitches. We put on make-up and real clothes to meet our clients for coffee. We hit all the deadlines.

And then there are some days where our babies wake up sick or our childcare falls through and our accomplishments are measured in noses wiped. The career that we worked for takes the back seat. The tasks deadlines are missed. We have someone who needs us more, and that’s our only priority for the day.

There’s no Asana task list that could encapsulate the complexities of the energy and the mental load it’ll take to make it through a day of working mom life. It can feel never-ending when one day you conquer all the to-do’s along the way, and the next day you spend face down on the battlefield nearly trampled to death. You think I’m being dramatic? I promise, I’m not. There are days we barely survive it. There are days we’ll resent it. It is exhausting and beautiful and defeating and empowering all in one.

And I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

See, we have a special calling of raising the next generation of world-changers, while doing our best to set the example for them. And one thing’s for certain, we can’t do any of it alone. Thankfully, we don’t have to because we’re surrounded by an army of moms everywhere who step in and encourage when it’s needed (and it’s ALWAYS needed). They lend a shoulder to lean on when our heads are too tired, and drop coffee off at our doorsteps to refill our souls.

I became a better mom when I joined MLD because day in and day out, no matter where the rollercoaster tracks lead, I’m surrounded with work that I love and teammates who hold me up along the way. Between the hours of nose wiping and goodnight songs, I am supported by women who see me right where I am — in the mess of it all. And I’m reminded that it really does take a village, not just to raise our babies, but to hold us all upright. It takes a village to keep our spirits fed and our hearts and minds nourished. There are so many loving arms propping me up each week, and this piece is dedicated to them.

Regardless of the day, I promise you 2 things will be true:

A mom will need to reheat her coffee
A mom will wonder if she’s doing it all okay

So, if you’re in this super hero club of motherhood, I just want to say, you are doing absolutely great. And we’re here to cheer you on and remind you each day.

The Working Mom: A Day In the Life