The secret to "having it all"

Today...Colin napped for 2 hours and 20 minutes, played a matching game, didn't bite anyone, and had cottage cheese and carrots for snack.  Jack pooped three times, his socks came home in a plastic bag, he ate bananas for breakfast, and then tried to eat his friend Brant's hand. 

The reason I know this?  No, I wasn't there.  It was all carefully documented on two pieces of paper from KinderCare that were sitting on my kitchen counter when I walked in the door from work tonight a little past 10pm.  I didn't get to tuck the boys in, feed them dinner, read stories, or see their smiling faces.  Ha.  Ok - reality check. I didn't get to scramble to get dinner on the table, wipe up tears, drool, spit-up (or worse), and then carry a kicking toddler up to his bed only to fall asleep myself and wake up at 9pm, contacts glued to my eyes.

However...

Today was one of those days at work I thrive on.  It was chaotic, stressful, and filled with questions, decisions, and explanations.  Before 10am I had already been on conference calls with Italy, Germany and Sweden reviewing their financial results.  By the time I left at 9:30 I finished another round of calls with Vietnam, China, Malaysia, and Singapore. Leaving the office tonight I felt energized, ready to take on anything that came my way.  I was almost giddy in anticipation of tackling my lengthy and ambitious Friday to-do list.

Fast-forward an hour and here I am.  Sitting at the dining room table in my dark, quiet house.  I'm waiting for the washing machine to chime because tomorrow is tie-dye shirt day at day-care and Jack's was dirty. I learned about my children's days by reading notes from their teachers, putting dishes from dinner in the dishwasher, and picking up the books Pat read to them before bedtime.

As women we strive to "have it all" - a successful career and family. To attain a work-life balance where we can not only climb the corporate ladder but also climb the ladder at the playground.

I left work today feeling accomplished and confident in my results, and then I walked into my house and felt like an epic failure. Other days it's the complete reverse.  It's one tough balancing act that over two years into this parenting thing I'm still trying to figure out. 

Maybe the secret to "having it all" is realizing this one simple fact. 

We can "have it all" 

We just can't "have it all....everyday" 

Tomorrow at 5pm I'll walk out of my office, take the elevator down 15 floors, and drive home.  The  only thing on my "ambitious" to-do list until Monday morning is to be Colin and Jack's mom.