Kittie, I agree with you, and I *am* a mother first and foremost. I've never had a job yet that stands between me and my children. However, being a single parent, I have had many jobs that stood between me (and my children) and starvation. There must be a happy medium here. Any new job I get, I make it clear from the very start that my children's welfare come first. If it snows, I will leave or stay home, whatever the case may be. If the day care calls and tells me one of the girls are sick, I leave. Although I have had some try to fight me, I feel so strongly about it, and I do my job so well, that they let me "get away with it." To allow me to focus at work, I had to bring pictures of my children to work with me. I have my oldest daughter's artwork up all over my office now, so all our clients can see it. My current boss was a single parent mother when her children were young, so she's very understanding. However, lose your focus, get jumped. She expects work while you're here. Well, at least most of the time, anyway.