Wondering what Great Expectations is all about? Every Monday night, I ask guest bloggers to tell us about some expectation that they had in life, and what reality actually turned out to be like. You can click that tab up top to see what previous guests have had to say (and there have been some harsh realities).

This week, the generous blogger is Natalie from Life on the Mama Track. She has two GORGEOUS babes (one of which I’ve been lucky enough to meet in real life, but she didn’t talkto me much).

She graduated from Harvard Law School, and ended up on the “Mama Track” when she realized that she didn’t want to work full-time as a lawyer.I think now, she considers herself very lucky to be able to work part-time from home.

Natalie co-hosts Essence of Now, a link-up that challenges bloggers to use photography to “tell the story of this moment of our lives” and she couldn’t be more sweet, fun, or intelligent (in person and online). Welcome, Natalie!

“Do you read books? Or watch the Oprah network?”
The question came from a place of love, of support.
Some of my closest friends were gathered at the playground, watching our kids play.
We’ve been friends for years.
Seen each other through ups and downs.
We met when our oldest children were babies.
And since that time, our group has faced countless challenges and milestones together.
The trials of parenthood.
Great and small.
My life wouldn’t be the same without them.
On this day, we were talking about what to do with our time after school started.
I was sharing my plans for the three mornings each week that my son would be at
school.
I had laid out an ambitious schedule.
And, in that way that good friends have, they recognized what I didn’t.
So they pressed me.
“Do you ever just sit down?”
“Do you need to do anything else?”
I paused.
Stopped.
Reflected.
Do I read? Do I rest?
Do I relax?
Do I need to do anything else?
No.
I don’t.
I want to.
But I’m bad about that.
I have a tendency to schedule, to book.
I’m often happiest when I’m busy.
I like activity.
By nature, I’m a juggler.
I thrive on adrenaline and pressure and activity.
I do best when I’m surrounded by people.
And I climb the walls at home.
When my son was my only child, my approach worked well.
We both enjoyed it.
But my baby joined our family last fall.
And, since then, finding balance has been harder.
Sometimes, the sheer act of getting the three of us out the door in the morning can be
overwhelming.
It takes hours.
And brings out a side of me I don’t like.
So, no, I don’t ever just sit down.
Or read a book.
I don’t know any non-network channel on my TV.

My expectations have always been high.
But I think I need to step back.
Slow down.
Rest.
I think I’m going to take their advice.
I’m going to schedule some off time.
Some time to take a break.
To pause.
To breathe.
I’m putting quiet time on my calendar.
And I couldn’t be happier about it.

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