Topic #3 of the Beautiful Change Challenge couldn’t come at a better time for me. The theme of this challenge is to take advantage of springtime by “ushering in new beginnings” and making your passion a reality.

I can’t count how many times I’ve heard someone say that your life doesn’t have to change just because you have kids.

I beg to differ. No, your life isn’t over– which is what I think people fear when they make statements like the above- but, yes, it changes.

Every single minute detail of your life changes.

There’s not a single thought or decision I make that doesn’t involve my child. Whether it directly impacts him or not, he’s a part of every piece of my life. When I get up in the morning and when I go to the gym is dictated by my son- by what time he gets up, when the daycare is open, and when he needs to nap. My social life revolves around my child- whether it’s waiting until I’ve put him to bed to see friends or choosing a daytime activity that’s kid-friendly. Every morsel of food I put in my mouth is influenced by son. {And I happily make these decisions, I might add.}

Last but not least in the slightest, my work is affected by having a child. What I want to do, how I want to do it, when I can do it- all different now that I have a new primary job title: mom.

There are so many factors that go into making the decisions that dictate what your home-work life looks like. Income, childcare, job position, hours, travel, spouse, support, time, passion- the list goes on.The hardest part is that it might take awhile to figure out what works for you and your family. You can’t just pick a scenario out of a hat and say that’s how it’s going to be. People’s real lives don’t fit neatly into tiny checkboxes that determine how you should make your life work.

I’ve spent the better part of the year trying to figure it out. At first I had no problem being adaptable- adjusting to situations as they came up and working around changes at home to make things work out. I don’t know if anyone’s ever told you, but babies change at the speed of light- meaning your life on any given day does too.

But almost 15 months into this gig called parenthood and things are starting to stabilize. One thing I know for certain: I’m probably never going to have a child that takes decent naps. I can wait and wait for the day to come, but I’m pretty sure I’ll just have wasted a lot of time hoping & wishing.

I LOVE being home with my child. I find it thoroughly exhausting {and sometimes boring and monotonous..shh don’t tell anyone}, but the thought of returning to an “office” job makes me nauseous. I’m grateful to have an occupation that can take on an unconventional format and am determined to make it work in my favor. You can’t “have it all” all the time, but you sure as heck can try to get as close to it as you can.

Where I’m going with this is that over the past year I’ve slowly lost my passion for private practice dietetics and running my own business, but my love of writing has never waivered, especially when my words can be used to inspire and encourage health in others. The reality of running a formal business while taking care of a non-napping toddler full time is as insane as it sounds, and it’s not what I want right now.

It’s taken me a long time to get to this place, but I can finally accept that just because I’m not practicing dietetics with clients doesn’t mean that I’m not working and doing good. It’s important for me to work both for my own mental sanity and to show my son that moms can work too. I know I have a few years before he understands, but it’s still in the back of my mind. We’re lucky to live in a time where “work” can look like a lot of things. There’s not a day that goes by where I’m not grateful that what I’m talking about is even an option for me and my family.

I think a mistake a lot of us make is getting so stuck on “living our passion” that we forget it’s ok if passions change. Every other aspect of life continually morphs and mutates; it wouldn’t make sense if our passions, desires, and interests didn’t too.

Well right now my passion is spending time with my family while still writing and inspiring people to live a healthy, fit life. Now I’m able to do just that: I recently took a position writing for Babble, a Disney-owned website for “a new generation of parents”.

I’m a contributor for their health and fitness channel. Pretty fitting don’t ya think? I’ll be writing about things like the new recommendations for food allergies in babies, the FDA petition about putting aspartame in milk and not clearly labeling it, dealing with my sugar gremlins, and things like the Lulu-Snafu and fun ways to eat chia seeds.

I still have a lot on my plate, but the nature of writing is much more flexible than working with clients. I’m excited and a little nervous about this adventure. I hope you’ll follow along and stick with me on this new journey. It’s not a good bye to private practice, just a “see ya later”…

How do you live out your passion? What’s the one job you would do if money & experience weren’t a factor?

A note from a Aveeno, the sponsor of the Beautiful Change Challenge:

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Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Aveeno via Glam Media.  The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Aveeno.