As you can see, Lela was a bit under the weather this week. My poor baby was a snotty, tear-stained, snorting, coughing, choking mess Sunday night through Wednesday. (Well, she's still pretty snotty even now, but clearly feeling much better.) And, of course, cold germs are the most diabolical when they strike at exactly the perfect moment to create chaos in an already busy and stressful work week. I admit, this was the first time I have actually missed having our old nanny. At least you can leave a sick baby with a nanny when you have to take care of Very Important Work Things. Not so with a daycare.
I had two major client problems come to a head this week, which would have maxed my capabilities even if I didn't have to divide my time between work and mommy duties. Yet, I somehow managed to take care of Lela and still get an unbelievable amount of work done this week. I'm pretty sure this makes me a pretty good law firm associate and a pretty bad mommy. (Yes, yes, I know I'm not a bad mommy, but believe me that I feel massive guilt for not being able to devote 100% of myself to my precious little sicko baby in her time of need. Gosh, is part of motherhood just accepting the fact that you feel guilty about something a good amount of the time?)
Good mommy/bad mommy issues aside, there is absolutely no way I could have managed this alone. Poor Babak had to work an overnight shift on Monday night, but he still managed to log tons of Lela-duty before he went to work on Monday and after he came home and caught a few hours of sleep on Tuesday. Uncle Leshaw came to the rescue, rocking a screaming, hysterical, covered-in-snot, refusing-to-go-to-sleep Lela for at least 30 minutes while I finished up on a conference call Monday night (well, she was only hysterical in her crib, not while Leshaw was holding her. She loves her Uncle Leshaw). Shohreh drove down from Baltimore on Wednesday morning, fighting 1.5 hours of morning rush-hour traffic. Then, when she had to leave for her faculty meeting and I was in a panic trying to figure out how to meet client deadlines and watch Lela for the afternoon, Shohreh simply packed her up and took Lela with her! That afternoon, Lela was cared for and entertained by who knows how many people at Towson (many of whom are fans of Lela through this blog. Hi Towson fans! Thanks for taking such good care of my baby!!!). I'm sure some people will regret that gesture of kindness when 50% of the Dean's office is out with a cold the first week of school.
Lela in the Dean's chair.Anyway, I was reflecting on this crazy hectic week and it occurred to me that this type of chaos must happen to every parent at some time or another ("I just picked up Jeannie at the police station! She got a speeding ticket, another speeding ticket, and I lost the Vermont deal because of her!" bonus points to anyone who can name that movie quote). I'm sure this is only the tip of the iceberg for us. Also, I'm a bit sorry to admit that Babak and I may not have held up under the stress as well as we would have liked to.
Anyway, we survived. I survived. And for that, I have to thank Babak who is an awesome husband, a fantastic dad and an equal parenting partner. I have to thank Ryan, our wonderful friend who lives in our basement and whom Lela adores. And of course I have to thank my wonderful mother-in-law who is so nuts over her granddaughter that she's willing to drive between Baltimore to DC four times in one day to take care of her.
Needless to say, I am gaining more and more respect for the other working parents out there. Some days (yesterday), the ability to find a true work-life balance seems utterly beyond my comprehension and I get a little overwhelmed by the thought of never finding it. I need to stop and remind myself to take life one day at a time, to rely on our friends and family who are available to lend a helping hand when needed, and to always put the happiness of my family first.
Love you guys.
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