“I think the optimal solution – just like kids – changes all the time.” Ciara Garvan wanted flexible work that could fit around her three children, and having spotted a gap in the market, founded WorkJuggle.com, an agency that matches people to flexible roles. Here, she talks about her SAHM
Has motherhood been let down by feminism? I was sent this article today and it brings up some really interesting points. The person who sent me the link told me she misses her career, but knows she’d miss her kids more if she was working full-time, so she’s staying at
“It may however be the case that even the most ambitious of women change their priorities when they have children and therefore they are happy to reside under the glass ceiling as it gives them the freedom to be home at 5.30pm.” This week I speak to Eimear Hutchinson, a
Are our families being damaged by the non-stop commuting lives we lead? Or are children with two employed parents doing OK after all? The media gives us conflicting answers to this – often on a daily basis. Most recently, there’s are reports of a study that showing that children in families
I get to be a stay-at-home mum once a week, so I know exactly what it’s like. No, not really. In fact not at all. My one day per week of SAHM-dom is Friday, so it’s not quite a representative example of true stay-at-home parenting. On Friday, the traffic is
“I have discovered in recent years that the world I thought I’d left when I chose to stay at home, is still out there and it is up to me to go find it once more. A task I am enjoying pursuing” This week I meet Tric Kearney, mom to
Amid the strong support for the feelings expressed in Donna Hartnett’s open letter to Enda Kenny, there has also been some “tough luck, you can’t have it all” type responses (on Twitter, and some referenced here) I don’t think that’s the point at all – I don’t think anyone expects to
“It’s a privilege to have a front row seat for these years of her childhood and I’m very grateful for it” This week I meet Suzy, who is the proud owner of one husband, one daughter, and one very demanding dog. She blogs at The Airing Cupboard, which is a
“There were mothers I met along the way that quite candidly said on a Monday morning ‘Thank God the weekend is over, I can’t wait to get back to work’ and there were others who lived for the weekends neither is right or wrong” This week I meet Aisling
“…while being at home with your kids is great…it isn’t easy, you don’t get a break, you can barely get a chance to pee in peace! It is very rewarding in other ways but it is in no way glamorous” This week I meet Sara Delmer who is a twenty-eight
Why is it that more women than men stay at home with children? In 98% of families with one parent at home, it’s a woman who takes that role. Assuming there isn’t a secret world where stay-at-home mothers get to loll about all day in spas sipping Pinot Grigio, there must be something behind
“Me, who had always had a title – Travel Agent, Teacher, PRO – now found myself with the title of Housewife? And I wasn’t going to call myself that for a minute. Only because it is a very stupid title – I never married a house” Back after the holidays,
“ if you want to be a head of IT in a big, multi-million corporation, you are going to have to work very different hours than someone teaching a couple of classes in the evening time. I think if that’s your ambition, then finding time for your children will be
“Listen, I was that person who was going to have her baby on Friday night and be propped up at the bar in the pub wearing full make-up and heels on Saturday night. Of course I was going back to work!!!” The weekly interview series is back with Gwen Loughman; a
“The oldest story in the world: I followed a boy” This week I meet Maud, who left her native Dublin at the age of 29 and a half to live with her boyfriend in America, just for a few years. Almost eleven years, one wedding, and two children later, she’s
“a massive amount of guilt is assuaged for me because I am so happy that my girls are at home with their Dad” This week’s interview is with mother of two Sadhbh Devlin. Sadhbh has always been told she has a head for hats. This may be true, but in
“Work is a break for me” and “Heading home now to the real job” are some of the comments I used to hear from work colleagues who were parents – this was before I had children myself, and really, I didn’t believe them. Surely they were just trying to make
” you don’t have to be a SAHM to be a good parent. This is just how I can be a good parent” This week’s interview is with Laura Murray, a mum of one-and-a-bump who is at home full-time. She blogs at MyInternalWorld, and here she gives an honest picture of life
“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
“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