To Work or Not to Work

The question that all Mammies ask when they come up to the end of their maternity leave, "How can I possibly go back to work?" I was due back to work in September, when Cathal would be about 6 months old, but he is just far too little to leave for the whole day every day. At only 6 months old, how can such a tiny baby cope in a crèche, demanding the attention of a carer who has to look after two other babies and fight crime at the same time? Well this question has been racing around in my head for some time. Then, a couple of months ago, I started to hear the rumours, 5 people let go, a few weeks later 10 people let go, a few weeks later and they are asking everyone to take a 10% pay cut......what is going on???

I work in the doomed construction industry, and it's all going to pot. In fairness, I do think most places had over hired a few years ago, and this little blip is now taking it's toll. So I weighed up all the factors. With Cathal's little extras, I had decided that going back to work full time was just not an option, after all, who would take him to "school" on Friday mornings to sing songs?

We did the maths, wages in, benifits in, mortage and childcare out, food and expenses out, and the sums just did not add up. I would be earning peanuts working 20 hours a week, and peanuts, although quiet tasty, just dosen't pay the bills. It was decided by a vote of three to nothing, that I will take the extra 16 weeks (genourosly) unpaid maternity leave, and add to that all the bank holidays and holidays I will rack up, I would not be due back to work till early 2010 (yippy, extra long holidays). By then, Cathal should be going in for surgery, so I am going to take at least a year of carers leave to help him recover from that little event.

And guess what, my employers are fine with this. It gives them breathing space, saves them a bit of cash in these tough times, and gives me time to concentrate on Cathal and help him achieve all that he can (he'll be playing Grade 6 air piano by this time next year).

So I going to be at home for about a year and a half, you know just lazing about, drinking cups of tea, watching Murder She Wrote and Dr. Phil (a deadly combination). I am looking forward to it though, I'm just not ready to join the workforce just yet, Cathal changed all that, I was totaly prepared to go back to work before he was born, but now his big smile tugs at my heart and I just can't leave him......*sigh*, the joys of motherhood.