Do the math, and you will realize that I wasn't a full-time stay at home mom for the duration of my girls' childhoods. I was very lucky to be able to pop in and out of the work force. By training, I am a lawyer. I left practice during my first pregnancy, and returned to that firm around three years later. The firm was Lester Schwab Katz & Dwyer. My specialty was insurance coverage law and litigation. We both benefited from a part-time arrangement that permitted me to work in the office three days a week. I am pleased with the contributions I made to that firm and truly miss the work. However, our offices were catty corner to the World Trade Center. Traveling to that area post 9-11 was severely disrupted, my children needed additional transportation to after-school activities and it seemed like the universe was telling me it was time to go. I gave notice and left to attend to my family full-time.
GACK! What an identity crisis I had! Bless Anne Crittendon and her book "The Price of Motherhood" to put it all in perspective for me. That book helped me understand that the work of motherhood is purposeful and meaningful. I learned that I was shaping my girls to the benefit of society. So my daily preparation of breakfast, in fact, had broader implications. But what about my "self?" Who was I and what would happen to me when my charges left?
Things were so simple when I met Joe. When asked "what do you do," the answer was simple; I am an attorney and my specialty is insurance coverage law. Then I had the girls and no one asked me anything about anything - the new friends I made all had babies in strollers. Then, when I went back to work part-time, the explanation got a bit more complicated - until I left and became, simply, a full-time stay-at-home Mom who did some per diem law work. Per diem, or freelance, work was a challenge because of the lack of continuity. This blog will detail the solutions I have been seeking and let you know my progress.
