Over 20 years ago I sat across the table at a restaurant from my future in-laws (My hubby wasn’t even my boyfriend yet) and told them my plan: I would complete my B.Comm & then go on to Law School. I hoped to get married and have children, I would take the formative years off and keep up on my legal reading so that I could re-enter the workforce when they went to Kindergarten.

Well, I finished that B.Comm & I even graduated law, although 2 years into my law degree I knew my passion lay in Marketing and that’s where I’d wind up. Never one to quit, I finished my LL.B but decided to pursue marketing instead of doing my Bar which I knew I wouldn’t use. Fast Forward 5 years: I am happily married and in a fab job, heading up marketing for a well-known restaurant chain and along comes my 1st child. I spend the next 8 years bearing 3 more children, all the while working as a marketing consultant, coordinating direct mail campaigns & more with my baby (and then babies) in the room.   I even start drafting & proofing legal contracts from home for additional income. I am a Work-At-Home-Mom, a WAHM. I become the go-to resource for a network of people with kids looking for recipes, organization & renovation tips & just general mom-info. I write over 400 pages of web content to share. I launch montrealmom.com and spend the next year and a half working harder than I ever have in my life.

Why the reminiscing?  Today, 10 years following the birth of my first child, I am getting ready to go to the preschool “graduation” of my fourth child, my baby. G-d willing, she will start Kindergarten in the fall. Wow. How the time has flown and how the plans have changed from where I though I would be at this point.

My best friend taught me an expression: “Man plans & G-d laughs”. Agreed. Life’s road takes many twists & turns and we never know where the path may lead. But I will say this: Although there have been bumps and turns into uncharted territory, the journey thus far has been wonderful. That’s not to say that it’s been easy.  There can always be more of a budget, less drama and more time (more TIME!)…but overall, I am enjoying the ride. 20 years after the conversation in the restaurant, plans gone with the wind, G-d may be laughing but I am definitely smiling.

I would love to hear how your plans  that “didn’t” work out but actually did.  Please share!

Have a wonderful day and as we head into summer, I wish you a safe & adventurous journey 🙂

Tanya