Workin'

I think that I have bemoaned work since the beginning of time, well... that is a lie...maybe since the dawn of my life with babies and then older kids. I worked in high school and in college. I recall getting up at 5 am when Steve and I were dating to go clean my assigned buildings on campus... Yes, a janitor. I even had a vacuum that you could strap to your back for the auditorium aisles. Really not bad, there were no iPods then, and I liked the quiet time to myself (kind of like mowing now). Now, I didn't love Arby's (the drive-thru petrified me) or the nursing home, but I have liked being a nurse. After Jenna, it was harder to go to work though. Then more babies came and they get older and all bawl or whine when they know you are leaving, that is heart wrenching. New sitters or daycares are always nauseating and bring tears. Working nights seemed better, at least they are home with dad at night, who needs a lot of sleep anyway? Well, come to find out, sleep is a good thing. I need it and mostly get it, especially as of late, but there is still the missing out...and sometimes I am missing out when I am present and awake. I mean that I am a totally irritable and emotional time bomb that occasionally explodes and feels bad at night once they are all tucked in bed. I will spend the quiet times dreaming of all the stuff that we will do together, and when the time comes, I am hung over from a night shift and just don't have the patience. Well, this is just tough cookies (such a dumb expression if you ask me...it should be "tough meat" or "salty cookies"). My intention was not to go on and on about being a mom that works. Lots of women do it, and I, by no means, imply that a mother that doesn't work outside of the home has it easier all together. I was able to be a stay at home mom for about 6 months last year right before and after Trev was born, and it is no cake walk, the house was not always clean, and laundry and dishes were not all clean and snug in the drawers or cupboards. There was chaos, misbehavior, long fingernails, scraggly bangs, and fast food because cooking didn't always happen. There were days when I craved adult interaction. I would default to turning on PBS or Nick Jr after the kids would go to bed because that was what we watched. It does require a lot of organization to make the day flow and introduce variety to allow adult sanity and child happiness. But with that acknowledged, that is still what I want.
But...Even though I went off on a tangent at first, the purpose of this post was to notice that despite all the bemoaning, I have met some amazing and wonderful people in the jobs that I have had since I became a nurse about 7 years ago. I am overwhelmed with the love that I have felt from and have for my co-workers, or as I usually refer to them "my friends at work". There are such good people in the world. I think of my friends and my experiences and am so grateful for the people that I have worked with that I have cried with through struggles and laughed with until my face contorted and then broke into tears of laughter. I think of the people that I worked with and ran my butt off with, and I smile because of them. I love their stories (happy, sad, serious,funny, and even inappropriate at times). And I love their little acts of goodness. Tonight, or I guess this very early morning, I count my blessings for my jobs- not so much for the income or even the great experiences in a profession that I like (although these are good things too), but for the people that I have met along the way. I would like to be home with my babies, but if I need to be anywhere else in the world, it's good to know I am in the company of my friends. I love you all!