I chose work I could do properly rather than accepting every opportunity to prove I had never needed anyone.

Childcare, time, and fees had to fit the actual day.

Some evenings, I closed the laptop before I wanted to because Owen needed care and Harper was beginning to stir.

Other times, someone I trusted stayed with them while I finished a task that required uninterrupted attention.

I learned that asking for that time was not taking something from the children.

It helped me provide for them and return to a part of myself I had almost stopped using.