What does it look like for You to "do/have it all?"

sweetsunnyc

I responded to the post about knowing people that seem like they are doing it all or have it all. I got me thinking about what does it actually mean to me to do it/have it all? Obviously my priorities have changed quite a bit after the girls and what it means to have it all now looks very different that when I was in my twenties.

I would now define having it alll as:

Making sure my kids are loved and cared for and that I am able to spend quality time with them.

Having my kids in good schools that provide them with great education.

Making sure my family is healthy.

Providing a nice, stable home for my family (and keeping it as clean as possible )

Making sure that all bills are paid on time, having a savings account and living within our means. Plus being able to have extra money to go out to eat, shop, take a small vacation.

Working a job that I enjoy, provides great benfits, flexibility and lets me help others.

Getting time to work out a few times a week, spending time with family friends an the ocassional night out with my husband.

Hey- I wish I had a million dollars most days, but when the above items are in line, I do feel like I have it all.

What does it look like for other WM's to have it all (or what would you change or add)

And of course, this is hypothetical- I know that you can really never have it all

dizzycooks

This is a great question!  I am going to reply, but I am also going to think about this some more because I have a lot of days when I would really rather be at home than at work.  At the end of the day, having my job means our lives look a lot more like 'we have it all' (by our definition) than they would if I didn't work.

So....

*Our bills are paid and we have money left to travel, save, pay off debt (a biggie right now!)

*We have cars that are reliable (btdt when they don't, it sucks)

*We eat well - fresh, local, homecooked as much as possible

*We can take DD to some classes, activities each week

*We can buy new clothes/toys when they are a good deal and we need them (and sometimes when we don't)

*We can save money each month and invest in our retirement at a high amount.

jlaOK

I love this.  I totally think that doing/having it all means something different to everyone.  Even within my group of friends, we have different priorities for what we do with our lives.

For me:

*having a supportive spouse who helps out 50/50

*working a job that I love, part-time so that I can spend more time with my kids, with lots of flexibility

*my husband also having flexibility in his job to "make-up" the areas that I can't in our 2-working parent household

*loving my kids daycare and being able to afford it

*making enough money to meet our financial goals - save for a new house, take vacations, save for kids college, etc.

*cooking dinner most nights and eating together as a family

*have great babysitters that way we can still go out w/o kids and have a date or spend time with kids

*DH and I each get to have "me time"

I could probably think of tons more, but this is what came to mind first.

2-Step

It probably sounds cheesy, but to me having it all really boils down to having my DH and kids happy and healthy, having loving family and friends nearby and not having to stress about where our next meal will come from or how we will afford shoes or clothes for our kids. The rest is just icing on the cake to me. The reasons and particulars around why and how we are happy and healthy are in constant flux, and could change in a moment, but that's ok.