If you don't have one of those large, rubberized exercise balls in your house, you certainly know what I am talking about. Some people call them "balance balls". Not long ago, I saw Janet Jackson on The Oprah Show. She was talking about how she had been able to lose weight and she mentioned ab crunches that she had done using one of these balance balls. A couple of days later, our balance ball surfaced from the depths of non-use (otherwise known as the downstairs closet) and I decided to blow it up and try her exercises. Thankfully, there were no cameras rolling and I found out why they call them balance balls! Until that exercise, I had considered myself to be fairly well coordinated. Apparently, I was mistaken. I rolled around the ball and off the ball. When I wasn't getting up from the floor, I was totally unstable and on my way to the floor. I think it is safe to say that Janet's balance ball crunches are not for me! Later, I realized that my experience with motherhood and work is like that balance ball. Some days, I roll totally off on the side of mothering and there is no work. Other days, I spend the majority of my time getting off the floor of my work just to get back on the ball of my motherhood. Some days, whether I am working or mothering or both, I am unstable and on my way down ALL DAY LONG. Many days, I look at other mothers and other workers and I try to imitate whatever they are doing that works for them. Eventually, I come back to what I know. That isn't always the best mothering OR the best working, but it is a balance -- MY balance -- and it saves me from the depths of dealing with the downstairs closet! Rachel Langston