[MICKEYnHANNAHsMOM]

Well I have been an RN for about 7 seven years now. As a new grad I went to a VERY busy post open heart step down unit at the Cleveland Clinic. I learned a lot there, most importantly time management. After about a year I went to a smaller hospital, well almost any hospital is smaller than the Cleveland Clinic. The same type of unit though. Then afte about 1 1/2 years there I got tired of looking at midsternal incisions and dealing with older people all the time. Not to mention staffing issues. So I went back to the Cleveland Clinic to their pediatric cardiac unit. I loved it there but I was driving 1 1/2 hours one way. And the areas I had to drive through were not safe. After a man tried to open my car door while I was stopped at a traffic light I decided it was not worth my safety to continue driving up there. So here I am now. I have been at my current place of employment for about 4 years now. I work as a perinatal float. I go to Pediatrics, the NICU and Birth Center, where I take a mother/bay assignment or an antepartum assignment. I do not do L&D. As a float my schedule is fairly flexible and we are only on call one summer holiday and one winter holiday a year. But during a 12 hour shift I can have 3 different assignments on 3 different units. And of course the floats get the assignments that nobody else wants to take. There are more days than not that I absolutely dred going to work.

Not to mention that since I have become a nurse I have gotten married and had two beautiful little girls (13 months apart). The girls just turned 1 and 2 in January and December. I work part time now, two 12 hour shift/week. We could use the extra money of me working full time but I can't bring myself to leave my babies another day a week. I work 11 am to 11 pm so that does not make it any easier for me either since on the days I work I get to see them about 1/2 hour in the morning before I leave and that is it.

All that being said I do not know what to do. I would love to do something that I can spend more time with my girls and my husband, who is a police officer and works afternoons. I have too much time and money invested into my career to start over in a new one but I don't know what my options might be at this point. I think it is just going to get harder as my girls get older as far as missing out on things and making sure that they are able to do the extra activities that they want to do.

Any input and/or suggestions would be appreciated!