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Mother’s Gonna Work It Out!
So I had a KIT day today. That’s a Keeping In Touch day for those unfamiliar with the term, or for those who thought it was maybe something to do with Kit Harington. Or KitKats. Sadly it’s neither.
I’m lucky enough to work for a company who are extremely supportive of those on parental leave, and KIT days (whilst not mandatory) are wholly encouraged. They are a good opportunity to do the odd few days here and there, and to get a feel for what’s going on so that when you do eventually return to work, you don’t feel like an
For me, it was mainly an opportunity to indulge in some minor smugness at how the place has (surely) crumbled to dust without me in the office every day. I expected to walk into something that resembled a scene from Mad Max, with burnt out vehicles, explosions going off, and everyone running around screaming. Disappointingly (but also, secretly – thank CHRIST!) the place is still standing. Rather boringly, all the stuff that I waddled away from in May is completely under control. And whilst my entire
“Going back into work for the whole day? Oooh you must be dreading that” said someone to me recently, as though I’d just told them I’d elected to undergo root canal surgery with just a shot of rum as an anaesthetic.
Dreading it? Are you effin’ kidding me?! I was bouncing around last night like Buddy the Elf on Christmas Eve.
1. Someone asked my opinion today. Yes, I know! Asked ME my opinion! About an actual THING! A WORK THING!! Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t anything major like which aircraft should adjust its altitude to avoid a mid-air collision (I wonder if Air Traffic Control do KIT days?!) but it was still nice to be asked my opinion about something. Actually that’s a bit unfair. I’m asked for my opinion at home all the time. However
2. There were biscuits. But not just that – they were chocolate biscuits. And I ate one, and so did other people as we discussed what had been happening and what projects were on the horizon. And as I watched people eat biscuits I realised something truly liberating – when the crumbs fell on the floor, it wasn’t
3. I had an adult conversation. Now, you’ll note that this is distinctly different than merely “conversing with adults” as in mum-world, these two things are not the same.
On the whole I find the dads in the groups a bit more game for conversation that’s NOT about our
4. I earned some money. The beauty of KIT days is that you get paid for them…..hurrah! And I can’t exactly say it was one of the most stressful days I’ve ever had in my life (see above points about chatting and eating biscuits) so I got to dip into the world of
5. I appreciated my little guy all the more for being away from him. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I firmly believe this is true for me. I knew he was safe with his Aunty Danielle – the main risk was him being kissed to death – so I could forget about him (in a good way) for 7 hours and just look forward to seeing him when I got home. And as most of my meetings finished by 4:30, I made sure that I really tested out this absence/fondness
6. I felt a bit like the old me again. It’s true to say that I had a fair few “brain fart” moments where I completely forgot the names of projects,
So there we are – work trousers are in the wash, wine is poured and I’ve got another KIT day arranged for next week. Although this time I will make sure that there are definitely KitKats.