mom crush ~ marcie wolbeck

Name:  Marcie Wolbeck

Stats:  Wife, mother to two toddler boys (Ryan & Liam), the Local Development Director for Cultural Care Au Pair and active volunteer across several different groups/organizations.

Why she's crush worthy:  Marcie is the perfect example of a mom who has experienced it all and successful example of a former SAHM that has recently taken on a full-time position at Cultural Care Au Pair.  Pre-baby she had a great career and achieving so much at a young age.  She was one of the youngest Division I Head Women Volleyball coaches and while she tried to maintain her career after her son Ryan was born, the frequent travel became too much.  She became a stay at home mom, but continued to be extremely active in many organizations and groups.  After 2 and a half years of being a full time SAHM, she applied for her current position just for the interview experience and voila she transitioned back to the workforce...all while maintaining her cool mom/wife status and staying active in all her many groups.  

Marcie is the example of a pro-mom that can juggles as much as she can without dropping anything.  See how she does it by hearing her thoughts on...

Marriage

• My husband accepts that I…do the best I can.
• The key to a successful marriage post children, is to…keep laughing!  My husband is one of the funniest people I know and when we can laugh about the chaos in our life it makes everything better!  
• We make time for each other every day by…giving each other a kiss goodbye in the morning and kiss goodnight each night.  I love those two precious moments in my day!  
• The perfect compliment my husband has ever given me is…talking so highly of me even when I’m not around.  Every time I meet someone new that he knows, they tell me how much my husband loves me and how highly he speaks about me.  
• The best quality that my husband brings out in me is…not taking life too seriously!  
• We always laugh about….how clean and organized our house used to be!  

Being a Mom

• Having 2 toddler boys has taught me that life is…loud, wild, crazy and fun!  I love having two boys and seeing them interact and love each other as brothers, is one of the best parts of being their mom.  Nothing beats the brotherly bond- they can go from rough housing to hugging in two seconds and no one makes them laugh like each other does.  
• The trait that I hope my boys inherit from me is…always thinking of others and how you can help them.  

• One of the most challenging experiences I’ve encountered since being a mom is…becoming a stay at home mom when my oldest son was 7 months old.  I went from a very demanding and stressful job to being home full time.  You need to give yourself time to settle into a routine and get used to whatever transition (whether it’s going back to work or staying home) you are going through.  As a new stay at home mom I was miserable not knowing what to do with my days.  I felt very out of place but after a few months of getting used to the change and getting out of the house via some mommy and me classes, forming a support group of other stay at home mom friends and cherishing the time I had, it became some of the most wonderful years!
• Important lessons that I hope my sons learn are…to treat everyone with respect and love.  You never know what someone else is going through so it’s important to give them the benefit of the doubt and show compassion.  
• I love being a mom because…no one loves me or melts my heart in the same way as my two boys.  

Transitioning from a Stay At Home Mom to a Full-Time Working Mom

• The similarities between being a stay at home mom and full-time working mom are…you never stop thinking about your kids and they are always your first priority.  And the guilt!  As a stay at home mom I had guilt for feeling like I was having to do the “chores” of a stay at home mom and not being able to always pay full attention to my kids.  I also felt guilty because I didn’t love staying home every moment of every day but I knew that there were a ton of moms out there who would love to be able to stay home with their kids every day.  As a working mom I still have guilt- that my son now gets excited on days when it’s just mom at home and no babysitters and that I miss seeing them at the classes they go to or playing during the day makes me feel guilty.  And that I actually really like being a working mom.  Ah- the guilt will always be there no matter the situation.  
• The biggest things that have helped with my transition are…wonderful child care providers, supportive husband, world’s best grandparents.  We have an au pair from Germany who has allowed us to have weekly date nights and treats the boys to wonderful adventures every day.  I also love the cultural exchange they are getting as they learn German words and phrases and learn about the German food, games and culture.  My husband has been very supportive of the change and my parent’s are the most helpful and generous grandparents around!          
• I deal with the stress of work and life by….usually laughing and eating ice cream…. and once in awhile a good cry- doesn’t everyone love a good cry sometimes?!   It also helps to keep things in perspective when you realize that there is always someone else out there with a more difficult situation than you!  When my oldest son was 14 months old he swallowed a prescription pill and spent a night in the pediatric ICU but thankfully ended up being completely fine.  While at the hospital I ran into an old high school friend.  She was there with her 8 month old son who had just been diagnosed with a brain tumor.  That encounter has made a huge impact on my life.  For the 24 hours I was at the PICU, I had no thought of anyone but my son, but upon walking out I saw the children that were not so lucky to be leaving after such a short stay.  I thought of their parents that had to work during the day or tend to other children at home and couldn’t be by their side every moment and it has allowed me to keep a very calm perspective on the daily little things that could stress us out.  
• What I miss from being a stay at home mom is….the fun of meeting friends for play dates, the flexibility to do different activities and projects each day and having time to bake and cook with my kids.  
• What I enjoy about being a full-time working mom is…I love my job and my co-workers.  Going back to work has opened a whole new world that I never knew existed.  I now get to meet tons of host families that live in the Chicagoland area and au pairs from all over the world.    
• I am able to establish a flexible work schedule by…working from home.  I love that I get to drop my son off at pre-school each morning and the evening and weekend events I work allow me some flexibility during the week so I am still able to be the Room Parent for my son’s class and have attended all of the parties and field trips with him this year.  

Having a Life Beyond Being a Wife, Mother and Employee

• It’s important for me to be supportive of my extended family because…my grandmother requires 24/7 care and I try to bring the boys to her house as often as possible or have her stay with me at our house.  I believe that it is really important for them to see me caring for her and helping her.  She’s one of the most dear people in my life.  They have definitely been picking up on the fact that we love and care for our elders and treat them with respect.  After all- who will be caring for me when I am in my late 80’s?!  Hopefully I will have my boys by my side!  :)
• I try not to overcommit, but when I do I….unfortunately this problem happens ALL THE TIME!  I am a chronic “over committer!”  Still working on saying “no” and scaling back on my volunteer activities.  
• Friendships are important for me to maintain because…every woman needs good girlfriends to talk to and they always help make the difficult times in life easier and the good times in life more beautiful!  
• Being busy makes me…happy and productive.  I thrive on having many things to juggle and when I don’t have too many things to do I don’t know what to do with myself.  

On Herself

• I would describe my life as…beautifully chaotic!  It is very busy and crazy with 2 toddlers but I also know that anyone with kids is going through the same type of chaos that we all are.  
• The most pleasant surprises in my life have been…the most unexpected things.  I was not looking to go back to work but when this job presented itself to me I knew it was perfect for me and now that I am working again it has added another layer of depth to my life that I didn’t know could exist.    
• In my busy schedule, I always make time to…tell my kids and husband how much I love them and how proud I am of them.  I love reading stories to the boys at bedtime each night as it is just the boys and I with no distractions.  
• I wish I had an extra hour in my day to…cook.  I love cooking and baking- especially bringing meals and baked goods to friends and family, but rarely get the chance to do it these days.  
• Everyday I wake up and think to myself….you have been given great gifts and opportunities in your life.  Try to step back and enjoy them without getting caught up in the schedule of what has to be done.  

As moms we inevitably are on one side of the SAHM or Working Mom spectrum.  While the grass always seems greener looking at each of the sides from different angles, Marcie has experienced both proving that regardless of which side you're on - there are two main things that make both situations much more similar than expected.  1) We love our kids unconditionally and they will always be priority and 2) It's a challenge no matter what situation you're in.  Thank you Marcie for reminding us that every situation as a mother is as perfect as we make it out to be!