Mom Jeans and Mantras

Eleanor is seven weeks old now, growing fast and just smiled at me for the first time today. Quite a reward after a wakeful night as we all coped with her stuffy nose.  For being born one month early, it's great that she smiled only a week later than when a full-term baby normally would. Good work, baby girl!

I am in that awkward postpartum stage where I've shrunk out of the maternity clothes, but only one pair of pants (other than the proverbial yoga pants) fit.  To bridge the gap between now and warmer weather when I can wear skirts and tunic tops to hide the empty baby oven, I just ordered these from Madewell. They're having a big 30% off + free shipping sale this weekend.

So they may literally be my mom jeans, since they're two sizes bigger than my pre-pregnancy clothes, but at least I'll feel cool. As cool as I can be while smelling like eau d'breast milk and sporting dark circles under my eyes that are probably not hot this spring.

Last week while I was checking in on the world of work and transportation planning, I came across a blog post about a contemporary who has shot to urban planner stardom between stints with the Virginia Department of Transportation and a national advocacy group. Since two of my former bosses have worked with him, I forwarded them the post and in turn received some well-meant words about how "yes, this guy is quite a hotshot these days and we want to see you wowing the urban planning world with more of your ideas too." After feeling like I had accomplished a great deal because I got dressed by 8 AM and wrote three thank you notes for baby presents, this was totally defeating. Not just because I'm home on maternity leave (and loving it, I might add), but because instead of aspiring to be something of a big deal, I have walked back my work obligations and ambitions in the last year in order to still have the physical and emotional energy to be mama as well. 

Most days I am happy with that choice, but whatever is left of the competitive pre-mama me still feels a twinge of regret when I see someone in my age bracket really knocking it out of the park, career-wise. So it was such a blessing later in the day to come across this little mantra in my Pinterest feed (another #momjeans cliche, I know!) I'm choosing to be happy with a calm(er) life, at work at least, because life at home is often anything but.  At least the sources of the domestic crazy are really cute: