A Secret to Success as a Working Mom: Turn Burn Out Into Bliss and Embrace Joy

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Last weekend my youngest was committed to going to the "Water Steps" a man-made water fall in Pittsburgh by the rivers. (Fun Fact: Three rivers converge in Pittsburgh--The Ohio River, The Monongahela River, and the Allegheny River.)  He kept asking. I knew he was serious when he said, "If you won't take me, I'll ask  daddy!" Given that it was highly unlikely that would happen on an unscheduled day, I relented. So, we went. It wasn’t planned in the way most things in my life are. No calendar block. No checklist. No “productive” purpose attached. And, so in some respects it was uncomfortable. And yet, it seemed necessary. It was the idea of my 8-year-old—offered with the kind of urgency only children possess when something is profoundly important to them.
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Working Mom Confessions: Like Beyonce Being a Mom is My Proudest Accomplishment

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Beyoncé Knowles performing "Listen" ...
Beyoncé Knowles performing "Listen" during "The Beyoncé Experience" in Munich, Germany. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
"[I]t's still a tricky time to be a woman — especially a woman who is balancing motherhood against a career, and trying to lean into one direction just enough not to be criticized for leaning out of another." Elizabeth Kiefer 
This blog is devoted to discussing issues relevant to working moms. One of the things I like to do is to point out when a working mom is catching some shade. And there has been some major shade being thrown at one of my favorite celebrity moms, Beyoncé.

She's receiving it because she was recently quoted as saying,
"Out of everything I've accomplished," she said, "my proudest moment hands down was when I gave birth to my daughter Blue."  Beyoncé
 Article:  Beyonce's all posts Is Proud to Be a Mom

Apparently, this quote sent reverberations around the internet. 

The common perception is that Beyoncé can do anything. However, apparently cannot say that she loves being a mom without facing criticism. Somehow saying that she is proudest of being a mom offended the feminists and suggested that she was denouncing all of her other accomplishments--you know being supreme diva of the world.

Motherhood is MY proudest accomplishment too


Don't judge me too harshly. However, I can completely relate to Beyoncé's sentiments and I am not just saying that to gain admission to her fan club. I can relate because what she said could have come from me.

I am an attorney and mom to two kids. While I am proud of being an attorney, but it's nothing compared to how I feel about being a mom. The best way to summarize it is, being an attorney is what I do. However, being a mom is who I am. Feeling that way does not make me any less capable as an attorney. It does not devalue my law license (which I hold in two states and the multiple federal courts) and it has not reduced my legal acumen. Being a professional does not mean that I cannot value motherhood more.

My feelings about motherhood are merely an expression of my truth. Given all of the recent debate about free speech, people should be encouraged to share their truth. Besides, how a woman feels about motherhood is the essence of choice. Someone's disagreement with her feelings is irrelevant.

My sense is Beyoncé and I are a part of a very large club, working moms who are incredibly proud of being moms and kicking ass at work, even if the rest of us are not the supreme diva of the world....



Location: Pittsburgh, PA, USA

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