I have officially been a mum for 3 months now!
Surprisingly, it was a real shock, despite the long, drawn-out planning process that goes into having a baby as a same-sex couple. I don't think anything can truly prepare you for the first few weeks of parenthood, whether it's been meticulously planned or not. However, we're adjusting to life with our beautiful baby girl well now, and my confidence as a mum is increasing daily. It's been a true challenge, but things have gradually got easier as the weeks have gone by.
Deciding to return to work part-time, both excites me and daunts me. The exciting part is going back to doing work that I love. The daunting part is a mixture of FOMO (fear of missing out) and learning to juggle motherhood with my career. Having faced some real struggles recently, it does put things into perspective, and make you think, "Hang on a minute, I can do this. And not only that, but I actually want to do this."
I recently dipped my toes back into the metaphorical calligraphy ink, (thankfully not literally!) by designing a bake sale poster. Meredith and I have become big Great British Bake Off fans since our daughter was born as we've had many more nights in than we used to have. I guess that's just what happens when you suddenly have a little person in your life with an 8 o'clock bedtime. So when the opportunity came up to design a bake sale poster for a nursery and children's centre, I jumped!
It felt wonderful to get a paintbrush and calligraphy pen back in my hand after such a long while and it was a lovely reminder that I'm really lucky to be someone who's looking forward to returning to work.
Having said all that, I do think the FOMO I have about missing our daughter's milestones and just having time to spend time with her, also serves as a valuable indication that this time is unquestionably precious. That's why I'm only planning to be working part-time, in order to attempt to get that fine balance of family life vs work just right. Getting that balance right will probably remain tricky, but something worth fighting for.
Anyway, here's to the future!
Feel free to get in touch now I'm back to work, with commission requests or project proposals.