3 Tips for Going Back to Work

Over the past couple months, I feel like my life has gone through the wringer. The ups and downs of going from “work-at-home-mom” to “work-out-of-the-home-mom” have been a roller coaster that I don’t care to ride again. In March, my husband and I made the difficult decision to close the business that I have put my heart and soul into for the past four years. It wasn’t an easy choice, but it was the right choice. (That’s still hard to admit.) While going through the endless motions of closing the business, I was also on the job hunt with no idea what I wanted to do. It was a long and emotional process, but I finally feel like I’m where I’m supposed to be, and I’m realizing that my family CAN and WILL survive without me doing everything for them! Here are a few things helping us all survive me being a working mom.

MAKE SURE YOU’RE HAPPY

Hard fact: If you’re working full-time, you’re spending more time at your office than with your family. During the job hunt, I was so anxious to land a career and bring in income that I accepted the first offer put on the table. Big bad move. I was there for two days and I knew that it wasn’t a good fit. My husband knew and even my kids could tell. Two days is all it took for us to say “big fat mistake”. Each night, I came home miserable and crying (that’s a story for another day). The third day, I hung my head like a kid in time-out, talked to HR, and we parted ways. I was so unbelievably ashamed that I failed and failed so quickly. But, ladies, when your gut instinct is telling you something – LISTEN! I emailed some contacts, told them I was on the job hunt, and I had multiple interviews and received two job offers within a couple weeks. My husband and I weighed the pros and cons of each and accepted the offer that called to me the most…I’m absolutely loving it. I come home exhausted, but I’m fulfilled and happy. Find your happy or you’ll have nothing left to give your family!  “If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy!”

EMBRACE THE CROCK-POT, INSTANT POT & FREEZER MEALS

These have been my go-to. After a long day at work, I still want to get a decent meal on the table. But y’all know that I’m not going to stand there and slave over the stove for an hour. Enter the magic that is “convenience cooking”. I spent an insane amount of time on Pinterest searching for recipes that would be tasty, healthy, and straight-up easy. Here are our family faves:

Crock-Pot: Ranch Chicken Tacos

Instant Pot: 15 Minute Instant Pot Orange Chicken

Freezer Meal: 20 Minute Tuscan Pasta

Tip: Don’t have time to wait for the crock-pot? Make it the night before while you’re relaxing, stick it in the fridge, reheat next day.

DON’T BE AFRAID TO PUT YOUR FAMILY TO WORK AT HOME

This is a hard one for me. I’m a self-confessed perfectionist with major OCD about how I like things done. I’m {slowly} learning to accept the help and not “correct” things when I get home. My family hasn’t been overly used to emptying the dishwasher, starting dinner, or switching the laundry. I was home all day every day and I just did it all without thinking much about it. Realizing that I don’t have the time for it anymore was stressful for me. I started asking for help and man, did the fam deliver! This past week, I came home from work and found a sticky-note on the fridge from my daughter. She spent her first day of summer break cleaning for me! It took a lot of self-control not to clean some crumbs left or wipe down new smudges on the fridge. It’d already been done and it was done with love…that’s all that mattered.

Whether you’re going back into the workforce after being home for several years or you’re going back after maternity leave, it’s hard! I’m still stressed and I’m accepting that’s just going to be my life now. There’s things I miss, like sleeping in now that summer break has started, being able to get my errands done during the week day, and lunch dates. However, I’m enjoying getting up and going to work every day. I’m enjoying making friends with my co-workers and having other adults to talk to. I’ve learned that my family can survive without me doing every little thing for them. I’ve learned that we’re all going to have good days and bad days, but finding a career path that works for your whole family makes it easier. Ask for help and embrace your newfound {work} independence!