Mum's the wor.. WORK!

You could fill an encyclopaedia with articles and blogs written about the challenges of being a working mum. Those who feel guilty about working, those who don't feel guilty about working, those that don't work but would like too and then those who desperately want to be a stay at home mum but who's financial reality dictates they have to go back to work kicking and screaming. So why not add my story to the mix just for diversity?

Invisible mum

Today started like many other days recently, a routine so many of us are familiar with, a strong coffee, a load of washing in before work and a non stop chattering toddler sat in her chair stuffing in toast and squashing blueberries into unrecognisable mulch on the bottom of her dish. A normal morning for most mum's, working or otherwise. So what's so different about THIS morning? Take a look at Mum, what do you see?

Home sick

The last day in our York home.

There comes a time where you have to make decisions that are far more adult than you'd like, where a thread of circumstances starts to map out a path that you know in the long term is the best, but you don't want to walk it in the meantime.  I have so often spoke about the challenges faced having lupus and working full time,  having returned to work after having my daughter I began to face a whole new round of unfair expectations in my working life.  And so began the merry-go-round of having no option but to reduce hours, responsibility and pay, be exhausted and pay extortionate amounts of childcare all to ensure we were £400 better off than me NOT going back to work.
There's only so much you can blame Lupus for, yes perhaps things would have been different if I was a fit and healthy Mum, but it was time to stop making excuses, there was no possible way I could work full time with a child and a challenging illness, it was a struggle working part time.