What is one piece of advice you wish you could offer your former expectant self?

My pre-children self was a workaholic and loved every minute of it. So, I would give this piece of advice to younger Cathe: “Don’t try to do and be everything to everyone.” It took me three pregnancies to come to this realization!

What was your primary motivation for deciding to return (or not) to work? How early did you tell your employer?

With my first pregnancy, I told my business partner after I told my husband and family. With each pregnancy, I shared the news with my clients when I entered the second trimester (it was very obvious that I was expecting at client meetings) and made sure that their projects were taken care of regardless of the stages of progress. With my third pregnancy, I also shared the news with the department director of the university where I was an adjunct professor. Everyone was elated with each pregnancy!

How much leave did you take, and how comfortable were you taking it?

I returned to work when our first son was 4 weeks old and with my second I took 6 weeks off. It took 6 months before I was able to get back to work with my third child because I had an emergency c-section and my son was a preemie who needed post-NICU care. In reality, each pregnancy and return to work experience was different—if you expect that nothing will ever go as planned, you’ll be pleasantly surprised when it does!

Who was your biggest source of support in returning to work? What was your biggest pregnancy indulgence?

My husband was my biggest supporter through each pregnancy and return to work. He has been my rock!

Fill in the blanks: As a working parent, I never expected ____ would be so hard and ____ would be so much easier!

I never expected coordinating the schedules of 3 kids would be so hard and scheduling a project timeline would be so much easier!

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