The Hardest Job That I Have Ever Had Changed My Life

Being a parent transformed me in unexpected ways. I found myself wanting to provide for my daughter and later my son the same security and benefits my parents had provided for me. I found a job at University Children’s Center. UCC provides care for children from the ages of 6 weeks to 6 years and I wanted to be close to my children. I worked with all the age groups but found my niche in the infant program. I enjoyed the close bonds I was able to form with both the babies and their families. I took great pride in creating a warm and inviting atmosphere. I took classes to become Infant Nursery Room Supervisor. Once again, I excelled in my studies and enjoyed the learning process. Bringing the information I learned into the classroom was

I worked easily 12 hours daily (admittedly mostly spinning my wheels), wrangled my mind trying to figure out how to make things work, how to fit all I was supposed to do in a work day. I cried more often than I care to admit.. but I stuck it out. I loved being around young minds, open, receptive, funny and full of surprises. It is wonderful to see a child become excited about learning, to hear "ah! I get it!". The pay is substandard, the hours grueling, the administration oblivious and obstructive, the paperwork daunting... but the kids are truly

Mid 2011, Linz and I got married, and added to our count of children, when we had twins! The stress of having a family of six was slowly starting to show. We were accustomed to taking care of our eight and five-year-old children who use the bath room without assistance, and for the most part could do most things on their own. Now we had these new twin babies who required a lot of attention that was mainly at night, as well as double the diaper, clothes, and food. We quickly arrived to the realization that we HAD to do more, picking up extra hours at work was not enough. We decided we’d both attend college.

Before we began to build our family, my husband and I were both working full time jobs at an upwards of 60 hours a week. This was practical at the time, but I knew I could not continue to do so with an infant. This led me to leave my job of 3 years just before giving birth. After a few months, I debated long and hard on returning to work. After very careful consideration, I decided the best thing to do for everyone would be for me to stay home. I knew that being a stay at home mom would be hard. More importantly, I also knew that my daughter needed me to be there for her. It helped me learn that the plan you may have for yourself may not be the best plan for everyone else; being able to compromise for loved ones is always important.

I worked with amazing providers that taught me various aspects of care, as well as patients who allowed me to be a part of their struggles in unexpected ways. In addition, I spent time teaching in a Medical Assisting program which allowed me to share my experience with women who had many of the same struggles I had had as a young mother. Finally, I worked as a Practice Manager, where I learned the art of leadership and how compassion must be balanced with structure in order to ensure the success of a business.

The summer before my junior year in college and for the next three years, I was a part-time nanny for a 10-year-old girl who was diagnosed with ADHD. I did this on a full-time basis during the summers. This job gave me an understanding of the effects of medication (Ritalin) on behavior. These experiences gave me a strong background in working with a diverse group of children.

Before Job Corps my life had been going downhill, see my Mom wasn’t in my life. While I’ve been at Job Corps I’ve learned many things. I believe I have a bright future.

I have three children, Danielle, Greg and Dean; I was lucky enough to be a stay at home mom till Dean went to Kindergarten. These years were the best time of my life, being home fulltime with my children. After helping Danielle, Greg and Dean; graduate from college, it is now my time. College takes a lot of time and

Gearing up a child to become a hard worker is a tough job, and as a parent you have to be prepared to put in the work. Smiley’s

Many years have gone by with much contemplation about what I wanted to do when I grew up. Due to my age, that vision has looked like many different professions. I started out with dreams of having an Army career starting at the age of 18, to have that quickly change when my new husband and I found we were expecting our first child. When our commanding officer found out, he spoke to us and explained that both of us could be sent to war at the same time. Rather than deciding which family member to give custody of our child to in that situation, I decided to depart from the Army and start my new journey as “mom”.

When I was a young child, my parents were both hard working individuals. My mother worked in the custodial department at a center for the developmentally disabled and my father was a self-employed handyman. I frequently spent time with both parents while they were at their jobs and from an early age I had a good understanding of what they did for work. My mother’s work looked hard and dirty, and I hated cleaning as a kid so I knew that line of work probably wasn’t going to be a life dream for me. The one thing I enjoyed about going to my mom’s work was getting to interact with the clients. The interactions with the clients allowed me to learn about disabilities and from a young age, taught me that everyone is different. In regards to my dad’s line of work, I loved going to jobs with him and working on projects in the garage. For that reason, I think that is why I complete tasks with great precision and have creative attributes.

My husband and I began our family shortly after I obtained an undergraduate degree. In just a few years, we had four children under the age of seven. I was managing a large household and raising our children in a stable, nurturing environment during pivotal early years. Consequently, I was not active in the workforce. As a stay at home mother, I was available to volunteer at school when my eldest child entered kindergarten fourteen years ago. After several years of serving as a school volunteer and being named the 2009 Volunteer of the Year, I gradually progressed to substitute teaching in order to continue building my educational experiences.

Mothers who worked in occupations with a variety of tasks and problem solving opportunities provided more warmth and support and a greater number of stimulating materials. Their children manifested more advanced verbal competence. Such findings are consistent with the classic argument of Kohn & Schooler (1982): "What parents experience at work, they incorporate into their styles of parenting."

I grew up loving children of all ages and wanting to be a caregiver. I was the baby sitter and nanny to the neighborhood and my church ward. When I was in High School’s it was no surprise to anyone that I chose to work in the school’s child care center. I continued working with children at several child care centers until I went to school.

In life we all have something that has changed the way we perceive things. Most things that change a person’s perception happens to be an experience that they have gone thru and learned from. In my case it wasn’t necessarily an experience, it was a dog that changed my perception on life. My mind and heart was opened in a whole new way. I never thought I could love an animal just as much as I loved the people in my life. I always thought it was strange that pet owners loved and treated their pets the same way they treated their children. My perception on dogs or pets in general definitely changed. Throughout this paper you will see why I am a totally different person because of a dog that entered my life.