When I grow up

This week is full of play dates. Today our friend Valerie and her baby girl Frances came over. Frances is about two weeks younger than Milo. Valerie and I met in our newborn group and have a lot in common. I definitely enjoyed today's visit. And she brought homemade pesto for us... YUM!! Tomorrow we're planning on getting together with my friend Kendra and her baby girl Sadie. Wednesday we're hopefully going to see our friends that are family friends from WV. Then Thursday some moms from our newborn group are going to meet at an orchard. So its sure to be a great week.

I've been trying to do some more reading about the night waking and I'm finding that its 'normal.' Babies will go through stages. Milo's current issues are new... and I have a feeling if we stay patient... they'll pass. You just never know what is going on in their little bodies... teething, growth spurt, insecurity, etc.

Ok... on to something new. What do I want to be when I grow up? Before, my answer was always "a mom." And now that I am, it is truly more amazing than I thought it would be. And while I'll be a mom forever... there will come a day when I will be working again. So when that time comes... what do I want to do?

I've thought about going back to school... but I have yet to find a program that I feel drawn to. And I have some stipulations. I want a career that will allow me to work from home with some flexibility. When Milo and any future child/children are/is in school... I still want to be home when he gets home... to be available to volunteer at the school and be present at classroom parties. If my kids are sick or forget their lunch... I want to be there. And at the same time, I want to do something I am passionate about. Yes, I want to also make some money. I want to find the balance between family, work, money, and a passion.

Well folks... I think I found it. I finally have an answer for What do you want to be when you grow (post Mom)... A Lactation Consultant. After going through our breast feeding troubles... I learned how valuable breast feeding support is. And sadly, there are lot of communities that are lacking that level of support. Sometimes... I needed hard core 'technical' support... and other times I just needed to hear... it will get better. It would be an honor to someday pass that support on to other women.

I've been doing some preliminary research into becoming board certified. And the great part is... there are things I can be doing now to start preparing. Just doing some shadowing/volunteering will help expand my knowledge and verify this is what I want to pursue. Then... once Milo is a bit older I can start really getting serious about taking the classes and workshops, etc. And after I become a LC... then I can also pursue other certifications like childbirth education, etc. if I want.

It feels good to finally have an idea of what I want to "do" when I get back to my working years. :)