quick clicks

moms today articles

moms today q&a

community & groups

research baby names

prepare a birth plan

content channels

ip channel rss feeds

read birth stories

read parenting stories

recommended books

e-newsletters

safety recalls

ip diaries

ip store

mom of the month

dad of the month

editor's letter

letters to the editor

Kids Heading to School?

Fill the Time by Fulfilling Your Dreams

By Jenn Director Knudsen

, a resource center for small and home businesses that provides ideas, tools and information for those enterprises.

And her PTA performance demonstrated to any future boss that she was quite capable of professional-level work outside the home. "I wanted to show a prospective employer I hadn't just sat around making jelly," she says.

These at-home mothers eked out the time it took to discover their passions and figure out a way – often slowly at first – to pursue them once their kids spent more time in school than in their hair. But doing so wasn't –: and isn't – easy, Hammond says.

"To do that, you need to carve out solitude," she says. "You'll not be able to tap into any of this unless you can find some time for yourself." She found solitude at her local library.

Maybe painting is what you want to get back into, or is something you want to try your hand at for the first time. What about volunteer work, gardening or wine tasting? Whatever your latent desire may be, you're worth the time it will take to make your discovery. "You're not taking away from [your children]; you're adding to them," Hammond says.

Just as you enjoy exposing your children to a myriad of activities to spark their interests, you, too, will reap those benefits. "Go experience a variety of things and see what you're drawn to," Hammond says. "See which thing resonates for you."