finding balance

It's an overused phrase - work/life balance. With a baby on the way, it's definitely on my mind a lot more these days. Do you feel like your life is well balanced? Or, do you find there's not enough time in the day for all that you want to do? Personally, the four spare hours I have in the evening take a lot of planning because it involves juggling dinner, friends, family, exercise, housework, hobbies, there's just a lot to fit in small windows of time. When you add a baby to the mix, I think a lot of stuff gets re-prioritized. All week, one of my favourite blogs, a cup of jo, has been interviewing moms with challenging careers and getting their perspective on time management. I heard an interesting stat this week that 94% of working moms are stressed out and 89% of stay at home moms are stressed out - which means any way you slice it, parenting is stressful. Of course I fantasize of falling into the 6% that seem to enjoy the balance of it all. One thing that I read a lot about lately that really gets my back up is stay at home moms who criticize working moms,"I don't even know why she had children if she doesn't want to raise them herself." This is a comment I've heard time and time again. I hope stay at home moms realize that it's a privilege to have that as an option. It's an option that a lot of today's families simply can't afford. By that sentiment, only upper class families who can afford to live on one income should have children. And single motherhood would be scrapped altogether. Isn't it ridiculous when you think about it? I feel like I'm always having to repeat myself that as women we have to show solidarity and support one another's choices. I respect women who are stay at home moms or working moms because I know both involve a tremendous amount of work. Also, some women choose to balance careers and family because they get fulfillment from both. For our family, we can't afford for me to be a stay at home mom, and I will just adjust to re-balancing life as it unfolds with a baby. I know that I will make them my first priority when I step through the door. And as long as they know that we're giving our loved ones our best, what more can we ask of ourselves?