Bring your kids to work day

This was not a sanctioned event by anyone other than me, but I had the privelege to take my kids to work one day last week. Andrea had a doctor appointment and instead of calling in another babysitting favor from one of our relatives, I decided to keep the kids for a few hours and take them to work.

Anyone who has talked to me for any period of time or read this blog knows that I've grown really tired of my job. I've worked here for over 12 years and in that time we have 'grown' into 4 different companies. 4 companies that have never all made a profit at the same time. Each year I tell myself next year things are going to be different, we're in a great position and sales are going to take off. Since 2001 we have pretty much been in a steady decline while we've gone through some transitions. The company is owned by a little grey-haired man and his 3 daughters. Part of why I stay here is loyalty to him. A larger part of why I stay is the flexibility that comes from working for a small company. I was able to take my children to my workplace, let them play in my office for a few hours, I was still able to get some work done, and that was perfectly ok with my employer.

The kids and I got to work around 9:30 in the morning. Some of my coworkers bought things from Ryleigh's school fundraiser, so the first thing we did was to walk around and pass out the goodies that people had purchased. I think it was a good experience for Ryleigh to personally thank everyone who help her school. The next few hours was spent with the kids watching movies and drawing pictures.




Ryleigh drew these pictures. Please notice how well the green shirt in the drawing of Clark matches the picture at the top of this entry. The dozen or so pictures they drew while sitting in my office now cover the walls - flowers, rainbows, horses, hearts that say I love you. They make my office a much brighter place.


My job is not exciting. It doesn't give me the opportunity to meet many people. I don't make great benefits or a lot of money. But, I DO get to bring my children to work with me. I CAN hang hand-drawn pictures all over the walls of my office to remind me of my children. I can arrive late or leave early to tend to family needs. Maybe it's not great, but I guess my job isn't that bad after all.