For one day, just a mom

I took the day off work yesterday. A few of my coworkers think it was because Tyler was sick, because my email to them said I "needed" to stay home with him. That was the truth - I needed to be home with my child, but he was perfectly healthy.

I struggle - a lot - with the work-life balance. Balance isn't the right word, because I clearly am not happy with how I balance work with home life. I hate how often I am away from my child because I work; I've even let myself calculate the number of waking hours he is under my care, and the number of hours in which he is under another's care. It's not a fun fact to figure.

I'm definitely one of the 67% (or whatever) of moms who aspire to work part-time so they can be home more for their kids. Until I figure out how to do that myself, I've had to make the most of the choices I've made for myself as a working parent.

So yesterday, I decided I was just going to be a mom. Andrew was out of town, so I didn't even have to play the role of a wife. I solely existed to care for Tyler.

It was probably one of my best days of the year. Tyler slept in and woke up to me - not a sitter, and not me in "work mode" begging him to get out of bed so I won't be late for work. We read stories, watched PBS, had french toast for breakfast, went to the park, got drinks at Starbucks - all before lunch! He was as perfect of a 3-year-old as they come, which is saying a lot. I am certain he needed this day as much as I did.

It's hard for me to take a day off work these days, knowing I have an unpaid maternity leave coming up. But I'm certain I made the right decision yesterday. It may be awhile before I achieve the balance I'm striving for, so playing hookie like we did yesterday helps me feel a bit better for now.

I have no photographic proof of our day. In fact, has anyone seen my camera?? (The photo above is from my baby shower - I just love it!)