I was driving somewhere - dropping the kids or picking them up - when I saw her. A woman, a bit older than me, kneeling at a flower bed in her garden. Weeding or pruning or sowing or tweaking, one or all of the above. And the image stuck with me as I drove past, ...
“Women have been conditioned to feel that it’s up to them to keep all balls in the air which in reality is just not feasible (not to mention unfair)” This week’s interview is with bestselling author Melissa Hill, who lives in South Dublin with her husband and four-year-old daughter. After an early career in banking, she ...
“When asked aged 8 what I wanted to be when I grew up, I answered ‘Prime Minister’! I must have been insufferably precocious….” Back after a St. Patrick’s Day break, the weekly interview series resumes with the writer behind Looking for Blue Sky – she’s a Dublin-based lone parent of three children, two of whom have ...
Working mother guilt – does it ever ease? If we’re not feeling guilty about being apart from our children, we’re feeling guilty about an un-ironed uniform, unsigned homework or giving toast for dinner. And sometimes we feel guilty about work too. While I would argue vehemently that parents in the workplace are working just as hard ...
“it is the simple things that I find the hardest – like my child being invited to a birthday party mid-week and I can’t bring them, so have to ask another parent to bring him so he doesn’t miss out” The first interview for 2014 is with June Tinsley who is the National Policy Officer in ...
"I try hard not to compromise the kind of mother I want to be, by not letting work encroach on the children’s time. But inevitably, deadlines need to be met" Next up, in this series of interviews with mothers, is Carmel Harrington, a sales manager turned stay-at-home-mother and now a published author. She is actually living the ...
Mothers: what is the solution? With working outside the home I mean, and the attempts to balance. I have never met a mother with whom I haven't had this conversation - the one about work. All of the below conversations took place over a two week period, just a typical fortnight of interactions: "So you work outside the ...
“ Late night in front of the TV with a glass of wine is often where I get my best work done...and don't ask about cleaning, laundry or grocery shopping... that just happens on an as needed basis!” This week in the Office Mum interview series, I meet Nicola Finnerty, who is a Qualitative Researcher for ...
"I think once you become a parent, guilt is inevitable" "I often feel like I am present physically but trying to work on something myself while doing homework/cooking dinner etc. I feel like I may be around my children a lot of the ...
Working from home: no to mascara and high heels, yes to school runs and meals with kids, and best of all reduced guilt.... Lots of people work in jobs that are not suitable for working from home, and plenty of other people are not allowed to by employers. But if you have children, and have ever considered seeking to work from home ...