All that & more... a guide to what the working woman can & can't have!

​I think that would make a magnificent book title.  I can see the promotional blurbs now, "All that & more" number one on the New York Times best sellers list for a decade!  Google the phrase "have it all" if you have a little spare time and feel like smashing your head against the old glass ceiling isn't disheartening enough.  

When did we get so obsessed with having it all?  What does it even mean? Who is the example of a woman who as it all?  Where is this mythical creature?  Who am I supposed to be comparing myself to in my sadistic mission to hold myself accountable to a bizarre and ultimately fictitious standard?  

I have been wracking my brain and the best example of a woman having it all that I can think of is Clair Huxtable.  She was a lawyer, married to a doctor, four daughters, one son.  She lived in a nice but not extravagant home, that never appeared to be messy, there was always food in the fridge, her children were generally pleasant, well groomed and well adjusted.  She had immaculate hair and wore suits, you never saw her in work out gear yet she had a great figure.  She was impeccable, and fictional.

Here in the non-fiction section It is Sunday, I spent the day with my husband and our 5 month old daughter.  We spent the morning snuggling our babe, checked out a new breakfast joint, picking out organic coffee, and browsing Best Buy for a new tv.  In the afternoon we had some friends over for lunch and busted out our brew-it-yourself beer kit.  We're looking forward to drinking a marginal, if we are lucky, porter in two weeks.  

We ate an Amy's frozen pizza for dinner while I ordered groceries online for next week.  The baby went to sleep at 8:00, I prepped for Monday, put on my pj's and crawled into bed around 8:45.  We didn't have a chance to run the vacuum this weekend so there is some dog hair on the floor and both upstairs bathrooms could use some TLC.  On the bright side all the laundry is done, the kitchen is clean, I painted my nails, and I even have a little time to crank out this post.  So do I have it all, or does the dog hair negate the rest of my accomplishments? 

Career moms is striving to have it all worth one iota of our precious time, or should we be focused on the present, making the best of what we do have, appreciating the opportunities afforded to us, and enjoying every precious moment with our family & friends?  I don't need to have it all, I have what I've carved out for myself and that is supremely satisfying.