At midnight on December 31, 2010, I posted the following as my Facebook status: BRING IT. And I meant it. I want to win the essay contest I entered in September of last year. I want to win the Ford Explorer, or whatever SUV it is that the local Dominick’s is giving away. I want to win the year’s worth of free shoes with Stylefind. I wrote the beginning of my stay-at-home mother manifesto on December 31st. I started this blog, and named and bought the web domain for my coaching business, Cadeau Coaching, on January 3rd. Last but not least, I started sending out my resume – and I’m aiming high. I jumped across that yawning chasm and embraced the idea that I could return to work full-time. And I don’t just mean finally taking the plunge into my private coaching practice a few hours a week. I mean full-time, the kids-will-have-to-attend-preschool-all-day kind of work. I will be happy to share more specifics as actual opportunities emerge, but for now I’d like to focus on how this “bring it” attitude has been getting along with the mother in me.

I’m excited. It has been exhilarating to revise and refine my resume and cover letters, poring over my life experience again and again. It has reminded me of how much more I have to offer in addition to the expertise I have developed as a mother and head of household. I’m adding even more fuel to the fire by reading “The Price of Motherhood: Why the Most Important Job in the World is Still the Least Valued” by Ann Crittenden. She is teaching me, in no uncertain terms, that I’ve got to be my own woman and put all my cards on the table. Finally, I received another nudge from the universe when I came across this article in the New York Times: “Flex Time Flourishes in Accounting Industry”. There are firms out there that absolutely value the importance of flexibility in combining family with work – and that mothers that work, or are returning to work, have not lost their professional mojo.

So it was a fulfilling day. Dropped kids at preschool, managed the household books, researched more jobs, refined my resume and wrote a few more cover letters, sent them out, served lunch, had quality floor time with the kids, made and served dinner, ran to the store, sent some more job inquiries, and wrote this post. Bring it, I say!