It's working for Renee
Dayton, Ohio
3 children
“[For telling my employer I was pregnant with my third child], I went into my principal’s office in tears. (My middle child was only 4 months old.) I asked her, ‘What am I going to do?’ Her response, ‘You are going to have another precious baby to love. Congratulations!’ Then I felt much better.”
What is one piece of advice you wish you could offer your former expectant self?
Children grow and change so much. Don’t sweat the little stuff (there are multiple ways of doing everything) and enjoy each minute. A clean kid doesn’t always mean a happy kid. Mess is actually FUN.
What was your primary motivation for deciding to return (or not) to work? How early did you tell your employer?
The first one, I made a big deal for the whole staff when I was about 9 weeks along.
The second one, I told my principals and closest friends at about 5 weeks along.
The third one, at about 4 weeks, I went into my principal’s office in tears. (My middle child was only 4 months old.) I asked her, “What am I going to do?” Her response, “You are going to have another precious baby to love. Congratulations!” Then I felt much better.
FOR MOMS: If you breastfed, was there a place for you to pump that met your needs and was conducive to your success? If you breastfed, how did you decide to continue? FOR DADS: What, if any, adjustments did you (or your workplace) make to your schedule after having a baby? Was it specific to your manager or larger, whole work culture?
d.
How much leave did you take, and how comfortable were you taking it?
My oldest I took 6 weeks maternity leave, went back to work for three weeks, and then I was off for the whole summer.
The next two I had via C-section, so I took 8 weeks off to make sure I was recovered fully from the surgery.
I was lucky because we live close to family and we have a huge support system. Since I went back to work with the third, our babysitter comes to our house everyday. This has been a HUGE blessing and has made going back to work easy. No one but other moms understands that it is much easier to focus on work when you are certain that your children are in a place where they are loved and taken great care of when you are not aroun
Who was your biggest source of support in returning to work? What was your biggest pregnancy indulgence?
My husband, he knows how much it means to me to be a good mother, wife, and professional. We are lucky because he can usually be flexible at work. He is in charge of most doctor visits, stuff during the school day that I miss out on, and most sick kid days. He goes out of his way to help with the housework and to make sure that I have enough time to catch up on school stuff when I need it. Since we both work, I feel like we respect how hard and rewarding it is to raise an active young family. We are truly raising our three children together and they are lucky.
Fill in the blanks: As a working parent, I never expected ____ would be so hard and ____ would be so much easier!
I never expected raising three kids with an age span of 2 ½ years would be so much fun. However, I feel that I am a much better mom because I do work. I cherish all the time we have together so much more and I can’t imagine my family any other way. I have no regrets so far.