I am very privileged that I have the choice to stay home or work. And even more privileged that my hubby believes in me enough to let me start my own business (shameless plug). It’s really tempting for me to discard this whole business idea in favor of staying home with my babies. After all, how cool is it to be around for the first step, learning to write letters, and discovering all sorts of new things! My kids are fun, and I like being with them. It’s comfortable for me. And safe.

Starting a business on the other hand, is hard. And risky. And there are lots of people who depend on me. Employees who need to pay their bills. Clients who expect us to do a good job. Service providers and resource companies who expect me to pay the bill… And on top of it all, I could fail. And the thought of failure is terrifying. In fact, I usually don’t start something unless I’m pretty sure I’ll be successful at it. Playing soccer was the obvious exception to that rule, but I’ll chalk that up to being a teen with poor judgment.

So why would I start a risky business that could heap failure on my head? Well, there’s the first (and most obvious) reason - that I believe in it. I truly feel that if my life were to revolve around my kids they would feel that the world revolves around them. (Or, in romanian, they’d think they were the buricul pamintului.) And that’s no good. I don’t want them to grow up with a sense of entitlement, or the idea that the world should revolve around them.

But I love that being my own boss means I can take an afternoon off to go try out the new slide at the playground. And I love that I can ‘have it all’ - the job, the time with my kids, the home-cooked meals (cooked by yours truly).

Now if I could only find a way to fit an extra 3 or 4 hours into the day… And do it all while I take long, luxurious naps… ‘Cause being pregnant while I have it all kind of means that I’m exhausted every moment of every day. And I desperately need those long, luxurious naps. Hm. So much for productivity.