Editorial Team
Working Mom Confessions: Kali Schmidt
My name is Kali Schmidt and I have a beautiful, 14-month-old daughter, Kazlyn. She is the brightest ray of sunshine I have ever had the privilege to witness in such a small human. Aside from my full-time, round-the-clock role parenting her, I also have two jobs that keep me working non-stop!
I am the founder and content creator behind https://www.kalieatsketo.com; a keto and low carb recipe blog. I started this online business after I lost nearly 50 pounds on the keto diet after giving birth to Kazlyn. The transformation I experienced was inspiring, and I knew I needed to share my passion with others! In addition to this new endeavor, I am also a registered social worker. My current position is working as an addiction counselor, with vulnerable and marginalized adults and their families.
When I am not working in my counseling position, I am at home trying to manage a household and my online business. There are a few days per week when Kazlyn attends a daycare to accomplish my most focused tasks. One day she came home from daycare with a diaper rash, as babies sometimes do. The next day we spent at home together, and I juggled my blog posts and her entertainment.
I decided to help mitigate the diaper rash, I would give her some diaper-free time. It was early in the morning when she rarely wets her diaper, so I trusted it would be an appropriate time to air her out. I set up my work in my home office and offered her my go-to distraction – the Tupperware drawer. She loves this drawer, let me tell you. She can spend nearly 30 minutes going through it all: pulling it out, putting it back, and banging on it with wooden spoons.
So we have the Tupperware drawer open, we have the bum airing out, and I am typing on my computer a few feet away. All is well as I hear her having a great time. Suddenly, it gets quiet; (every parent knows, this means something is up!) I was right in the middle of a post, so I figured she was just fascinated by one of the containers.
A few minutes later, I see her toddling out toward me, covered in poop. Not only did she have a bowel movement without a diaper on, but she proceeded to rub the Tupperware containers (and herself) in it! We went right into the tub, and I bleached those containers several times for the rest of the day.
Motherhood has additional challenges I did not expect, aside from airing out diaper rash stories. My pregnancy was planned, and I certainly believed that I had “thought everything through”. However, I now know it is impossible to fully anticipate the journey of motherhood until it happens!
The biggest challenge that I have faced so far is my lost sense of identity. Staying home with my daughter on maternity leave has been a gift, but it has also been an adjustment within myself. I no longer can just take a weekend trip if I feel like it or go out for dinner to have some stress-free time. Sometimes it is difficult to go for a shower!
When I put her to bed at night, I am then confined to my property lines to ensure she does not wake up and need something. I feel like I give all my energy to caring for this tiny human and my employment. And I am left wondering where I fit in. I have great passions in life, but they have taken a back seat since becoming a mother. So I would not trade my daughter for anything, but this challenge has got me working on my adaptation skills!
Another challenge I have faced since becoming a mother is the way that pregnancy has changed my body. Despite losing weight and keeping it off successfully with keto, my body is still different. My skin is different, my tissue composition is different, and my clothes fit differently. There is a belly in the way of my pants down there, and it is not budging. Not to mention the luscious breasts I had while I was pregnant and breastfeeding have vanished into thin air! Learning to love me as I look now has been a journey.
My body is forever changed after growing, carrying, and nurturing my baby. I am grateful I was able to carry my pregnancy to term and have a positive birth and breastfeeding experiences. However, it is still a challenge to adjust to the stretch marks, scars, and other changes that accompany my gratitude.
The work never ends in all my jobs. Whether it is blogging at https://www.kalieatsketo.com, counseling those in addiction, or tending to the curiosity of a 14-month-old. Parenting is altogether another kind of work, for which the compensation is not money; but laughter, tears, growth, and love. However, I must say, nothing else pays as well.