Deciding to Go Back to Work

I have been a stay at home mom for the last 15 years since Christian was born. It has been such a huge blessing and privilege to have that opportunity. Honestly, being a mom was what I always wanted, and being home with my kids is so important to me. Jonathon has always supported me in that decision, and we made it work financially, even when things were really tight right out of grad school. 

I can hardly believe that my kids are getting so old now. Christian is in high school, Andrew is starting junior high, and Hyrum is in 3rd grade. Last year, we decided to home school our kids because the Covid-19 pandemic was in full swing, and there were major disruptions with the schools. Jonathon and I both think it was the right thing to do because our kids had stable schooling and because of that were able to progress so much more than those in the public schools. It was also such a great opportunity to try out homeschooling and find out that we could succeed with it if needed. When it was time for school to start this year, we reevaluated and decided to send the boys back to school. There were several factors involved. Most importantly, the boys each decided for themselves that they would like to return. I told them I would be happy either way. They really missed their friends and the social interaction, so they voted to go back. As parents, we felt good about this decision because the schools had really settled into a routine to deal with Covid. Provo School District announced they were no longer going to do half days and mandatory masking. We felt like the disruptions would be significantly less since we have been dealing with this pandemic for over a year now.

The decision to send the kids back to school left me in an interesting position. With no kids at home, I started to wonder if I should start looking for a job to keep me occupied. I worried because there is definitely still a lot to do at home to keep everything running smoothly, but I was also concerned that if I didn't have something to keep me busy, I might get a bit depressed. After being so involved with my kids last year, I just wanted to feel needed and appreciated. That desire, however, was not enough to change my opinion about the importance of mothers in the home. I know that kids do best when there is a parent home when they are home. I have seen the dangers and problems that occur when kids are left on their own all the time. I didn't want to miss out on the important time when they get home from school and want to talk to someone. I didn't want to have to find childcare during the summer. All of these factors made me hesitate on finding a job. I considered various work from home options, but none really stuck out to me. 

One day when I was scrolling through Facebook, I saw a post about Hyrum's school needing some instructional assistants to help in classrooms. Specifically, they were hiring for math proctors to administer the new Acadience math test. At first I just kept scrolling, but over the next few days, I continued to think about it and kept feeling a nudge to investigate further. The description sounded interesting and fit all of my non-negotiables about being home when my kids were. I talked to Jonathon, and he was super supportive of me applying. In fact, he actually thought it would be really good for me.

After more thought and many prayers, I decided to at least apply. Since I haven't worked in many years, I do not have a great resume, I don't have a lot of work experience, and I haven't had to go to an interview in a long time. I was actually pretty nervous about the whole thing. 

I met with the Lakeview Principal, Mike Barker, and Assistant Principal, Jamie Leite. They were both very friendly and described the position and what would be expected. Luckily, it seems that schools are always desperate for help, so the fact that I haven't worked in a long time was not a deal-breaker. In fact, it seemed like it was actually fairly typical for the position. By the time the interview was over, they had basically already hired me. 

I had to go through an orientation meeting for PCSD and a background check, and then I could start working. I was super nervous on my first day, but Jamie took me around to meet all of the people I would be working with, and gave me my new schedule. It all worked out great because I get to leave for work after Christian and Andrew are already gone, and I get home at about the same time as they do. It's also really great that I get to take Hyrum, work at his school all day, and then go home with him. I have all the same school holidays off, and I don't miss any time with my boys. The job is also pretty flexible, and the administration is wonderful about putting family first. If there is ever a time that I need to take off work to take care of sick kids or other issues, they are very willing to let me. I like the people I work with so far, and I think I will enjoy what I do. 

There are plenty of good things about the job, but there are also some not so great things. For one, the pay is an abomination. I only make about $12 per hour. That feels a bit insulting to me since I have a college degree and am a trained teacher. I could be a teenager working at Wendy's and make $15 per hour right now. It just feels like the state doesn't prioritize education and paying decent wages to the people that are working with children enough. There are plenty of excellent, talented people who could teach in schools, but the lack of pay really cuts down on who can take those jobs and survive financially. There have been times when I have wondered if the pay is worth it, but the benefits outweigh the poor pay for me and my specific situation. It is also important to note that we do not need the extra money. It is super nice to have a bit more, but we were doing fine on Jonathon's pay. It again makes me feel grateful that we have this option, as I know it is not possible for many people. 

Another difficult thing about going back to work is finding time to do all the household chores. Grocery shopping, meal prep, and laundry have been especially challenging, but I am slowly getting used to it, and everyone is stepping up and helping out more to make sure that everything gets done. I am way less on top of things now and can't do everything to perfection like I prefer, but hopefully I will adapt to working and learn how to get everything done. 

This all happened very suddenly, but so far going back to work has been a good experience, and I am glad that I took the leap and did something that was scary for me.