Why did you write Take Ten?
I was really unprepared for being
home full-time with young children. I had some major
adjustments. Writing these stories helped me capture some of the
“forever moments” that happened during the everyday tasks of
raising our children.
There were days when I felt unable
to change one more diaper, or clean up one more spill, when I
really needed a reminder about the big picture. These stories
are small reminders of the more important themes hiding beneath
the clutter and constant motion of growing children.
Talk a little about the importance of being in
the moment.
A: I tend to be pretty restless,
always looking for what’s next on the schedule. Watching our
children learn about their world encouraged me to slow down
enough to experience things from their perspective. All their
senses were alive all the time, drinking in everything around
them: the squishy feel of pudding, the sound of splashing water,
the excitement of gravity… Being pulled into their world was
refreshing. It helped me balance the exhausting parts of
parenting.
How did your mother influence your stay-at-home
experience?
It turned out that my mother had
gone through similar transitions when my brother, sister, and I
were young – I’d never really asked her about this until I quit
my job. At my dad’s encouragement, my mom had gone back to
school after having three kids, and then worked as a teacher.
She’s always been a big advocate for kids having plenty of
“unscheduled” time, and that theme encouraged me to relax more
and learn to enjoy the small wonders of children.
How did you feel about being home full time?
Different every day, really. I had no idea how
much my identity had been wrapped in what I did for a living
until I left the traditional working world. In addition to
parenting, I was always scrambling to supplement my personal
needs: being in a book club, a writer’s group, quilting and
sewing for home and for hire. I also ran a home exchange branch
for two years. I didn’t make any money, but it required me to
become internet savvy, which led to other home-based
opportunities. I was able to gradually work more from home as
our boys grew.
How has being a stay-at-home parent changed you?
In a way, being at home has a lot of
the same challenges as being at work. There are maintenance
tasks, and personality issues, days when you just can’t seem to
get in the groove. But having a long-term goal I truly believe
in – raising well-rounded human beings – has definitely made me
more picky about what I do with my time. As I look for work now,
it’s more important to me to find an organization whose
long-term goal means something to me, personally. I may not find
it on my first try, but that’s what I’m searching for.
What were some of the challenges in writing this
book?
Well, it’s been about ten years
since I wrote the first story, so time was definitely a
challenge. And as our boys got older, I felt the need to make
sure they were okay with being the subjects of these stories.
And patience. Since I was mother 90%
of the time, that didn’t leave a whole lot of room to write more
than scribbled journal entries. Luckily, that casual form of
writing is well-suited to constant interruptions – I think it
might even have been better because of them, more intense.
What would you like your readers to take from
your book?
I hope my readers will gain a sense
of companionship and inner-peace, the things I was searching for
as I wrote each story. Many of us question ourselves, our
decisions, our courage, and stamina as we raise our children.
But we don’t always give ourselves time to reflect on our
experience. I tried to be very honest about the conflicts I
experienced, and especially about the elusiveness of
resolutions
I also hope that my readers will
take a little time to watch for their own family’s “forever
moments," because I think these are what help us define our
relationship with our children.
What are you working on now?
I’m always looking for new writing
opportunities, especially now that I have this book to promote.
I just wrote a short monologue for a ‘Best of Breast’ play
that’s being written and produced in Salt Lake. I spend time
reading through and contributing to various parenting blogs, and
I’m active in my writing group, where other writers are
exploring their own publication potential.
