6 Week Maternity Leave or Not enough time

To all the mothers who had to go back to work after 6 weeks (heck, I have one friend who went back after two weeks), I embrace your courage and my heart is broken for you. 

I purposely took a 6 week break from this blog and then needed another 6 weeks because I did go back to work and found I didn't have a second to get back to this blog post until now 20 weeks later.  For me, it's a part of the "BUT-THEN EFFECT" which I wrote about here in this blog.

There is a lot of conversation around maternity leave.  1 year, 6 months, 6 weeks?  Paid vs. unpaid? Even in generous circumstances, in America, it seems like you don’t get much of anything, and we’re not even going to touch PATERNITY leave.

If you know me, you know I’m a filmmaker.  *See my award winning film The Other One on Amazon or Hulu.

The reason for the shameless plug is because in my career I’ve met many awesome female filmmakers, and one is doing a great documentary on this exact topic.  The title is called ZEROWEEKS, directed by Ky Dickens.

It’s an apt title.

I’m a working mom with a most unusual profession during the first year of my babe’s life.  I am touring in my tiny house on wheels called the #TinyLab and sharing it in 20+ cities all over the United States, until Jan. 2017.  The nationwide tour is called Proof is Possible.

My hours during our “on” weeks don’t stop, and then often on our “off” weeks we’re driving to the next location or trying to catch up on business/life things like bookkeeping, promotion, and dealing with all the little bosses in our lives from this tour.  It doesn’t leave you with much time and it’s very hard, but it’s also very magical.

And remember, I do all of this while my baby is with me. 

I AM SO LUCKY.  I have been able to be there for her comfort, her nutrition, for her giggles, first rolls, sitting up, flinging herself around trying to stand up, and all the other fun milestones that happen in the beginning of her life. 

Some think it’s cruel, others think it’s amazing, everyone has an opinion, but it’s working for us and that’s all that matters.  We have a very happy, healthy baby.

So back to maternity leave.  I don’t think little to no weeks works for anyone.  Can we all help each other out on this one?  As we come into an election year let’s elect people who care about the family and women’s rights. 

Voting for Hillary Clinton is a vote for her broad stance on this for all families, regardless of income.  This year it has obviously hit home for me in the most intimate way. 

But let’s get real for a second.  She would just be the President.  Lots of people need to be elected to help her achieve these goals, Democrats, Republican, and Libertarian alike.  Research.  Stand up for the future by investing in the health of mommas and babies.  They need time to be together and we need to give it to them.

Here’s an easy link to help you research elected officials.  Go educate yourself and vote or stand to the side and don’t complain.

National Organization for Women PAC Endorsement Guide

Note, this is just one source many more endorsements are out there.