Happy Birthday Max

People often ask how Alexa and I balance our business with motherhood.  I’m not sure how Alexa has managed so well all these years, but I can now tell you how I’ve enjoyed / survived the first year.  I will admit up-front that compressing my full time job (Tin Can Knits) plus the running of a new business (Rainbow Heirloom) into a part-time schedule worked around a new and demanding little family member has not been easy!

Motherhood (and/or being an entrepreneur)… it’s heavy lifting

A few weeks after Max was born, I decided that the term for my new normal would be ‘heavy lifting’.  Motherhood was clearly going to be heavy lifting, and keeping the wheels turning at Tin Can Knits and Rainbow Heirloom at the same time was going to require more of the same.

On the upside, I was able to work while Max was sleeping away, contented as a bean (I rocked the moses basket with one foot as I typed).  Although working through my ‘maternity period’ was essentially required (Alexa had Bodhi at the same time, and there was no way we could both take a year off), I also enjoyed the pleasure of continuing my work, which I understand is something that some women miss.

It has also been a HUGE pleasure to have my own baby ‘in the book’.  Photographing our designs on my precious little peanut brought a whole new sense of poignancy about the process for me.  Becoming a mother made me understand the pleasure of these little knits in a real, emotional way that I hadn’t before.

just strap the baby on and go

Outside of some amateur dramatics, Max has been a trooper, a very accommodating ‘take-along’ baby.  At 12 weeks, he came to Yarndale, where he slept under the table while I signed books, breastfed while I chatted business to industry contacts, and charmed the socks off hundreds of knitters!

At the Edinburgh Yarn Festival I built up the display booth with a (grumbling) little one strapped to my back.  He’s travelled miles too, visiting Canada, Holland, and Spain – such a big carbon footprint for a little dude.

thanks for the support!

I have been very lucky as my husband John has taken the last 6 months in paternity leave to spend time with Max and do some software development from home.  It has been a pleasure for John to share Max’s baby days, and allowed me half time working hours without the anxiety or cost of outside childcare.

It has also been crucial having Alexa (aka the best business partner in the world) in my corner, understanding, hard-working and uncomplaining as she wrangled her own new baby number 3!

let’s raise a glass to the moms and dads everywhere

Max’s party is a spanish tapas themed affair, so I’ll be enjoying sangria and home-made ice cream cake because there’s no such thing as Dairy Queen here in the UK (why?! I don’t know).  I’ll be celebrating little Max, but I’ll also be celebrating me, because it’s been a big year, and I’m proud I made it!