I’m pretty sure I just used up of six minutes of my allotted fifteen minutes of fame. In May, I was interviewed by OC Family magazine (see it here on page 82) about being a working mom.

And then the editor Susan Belknapp (see her blog here) asked me to be part of a panel interview on “Cox Forum.”  It’s a local show about issues facing the heart of Orange County–actually, I don’t know what their shtick is–I just made that up. But I am sure it’s something like that.

I was nervous. It was the first time that I was “coming out” that I worked at CHOC Children’s. Up until that point, I only ever wrote about “working for a hospital.” That meant that I’d have to put on my PR hat and say the right thing–about one of the most hot-button issues ever. In the history of motherhood. No pressure. Now, I am no stranger to the debate between the working moms and the stay-at-homers.  But I do, obviously, have my own opinions and was nervous about whst “work Pam” could have to say about all of this. 

The good news is I was paired up with Trinka–a VP at a well-known bank, and a mother of a two-year-old. It turned out that it wasn’t even a debate. We were pretty much on the same page. There wasn’t anybody there yelling at us or pointing fingers. Just an honest discussion about the issues facing working moms.

We both answered some pretty loaded questions, and think we did okay, considering that we are amateurs.

You can see the video below. I am used to writing speaking points for people going in front of the camera, not actually being in front of it. And please be kind, I was so nervous that I wasn’t sure what to do with my hands. So I sat on them. Can you say awkward?

And the real highlight of the night? Once Trinka and realized that our little ones were fast asleep at home and there was no need to hurry home. Susan, Trinka and I went out for a yummy meal and an even yummier and much-needed drink.

 In case you wanted to know, I plan to use the last nine minutes toward a windfall lottery mega win and when I am interviewed by Oprah. And in case you want to see me at OC Family, click here.

I can, with certainty, say that nobody will EVER call me a “guidette.” If this makes sense to you, then you know that I am talking about MTV’s newest show, “Jersey Shore.”

Over the last week or so, I’ve had almost a dozen friends ask me if I’ve seen it. People that don’t even really watch TV! So yesterday, when I was home sick with bronchitis (and the girls were at daycare) I watched the first two episodes on MTV.

Now, I am not saying that this is groundbreaking television. But it’s a guilty pleasure. As my friend over at The Television Mom says, it’s the perfect hate watch. I found myself longing for the days that what I cared about most was the size of my “poof” or who was going to hook up with “The Situation.” The whole time it was on, I was telling myself that I should be sleeping instead. But, alas, I couldn’t look away. It was like a car wreck, no wait, a train wreck. And I am ashamed to admit I loved every minute of it!

If you’ll excuse me, I should go and get some ham and a bottle of water…

Let’s face it. Things around here are busy and getting busier. We’ve had an incredibly busy and hectic month, with lots of ups and downs. I’m not going to lie–I’ll be happy to see the month end next week.

Abby is finally teething, which makes me happy (READ: glad that she isn’t teething in 11 weeks when we also have a screaming newborn). But I am in a sort of downward spiral. She has stopped sleeping for longer than a two-hour spurt at night. And she doesn’t just wake up with a whimper. It’s a full-fledged, teary howl that is enough to push even the most sane (which I don’t claim to be) mom over the edge. Poor Abby, she’s got five teeth coming in all at the same time. I’d be fussy, too.

It isn’t like I can look forward and say “at least in June I’ll be able to sleep.” I am thinking a little more long term, like “when the girls are in college and don’t live here anymore, I’ll be able to sleep.”

But just because she screams and keeps me up all night, it doesn’t mean that I get to skip work the next day. Professional Pam is supposed to show up looking put together. In clean, pressed business clothes, and shoes that aren’t Uggs or Old Navy flip flops. As my belly grows, it’s getting harder to fit into anything that looks presentable, or shoes that fit. And the WORST part is that I have a job that requires focus and brainpower. So the whole half-asleep thing doesn’t really fly. But I make it work because I have to–even though by the time Friday night comes, I find myself literally thanking God that I didn’t keel over that week.

A dear friend here at work (who shall remain nameless) told me once that she had a plan to shut her office door and take a nap under her desk, a la George Costanza. She would take a handful of paperclips with her so that if someone came in or knocked, she could simply explain that she had dropped the paperclips under her desk and she was picking them up.

I have so many pictures to post, but they are very random and spread out over the last month. I promise to upload some recent pics with some quirky photo captions sometime in the next couple of days. But if you need me in the meantime, I’ll just be here under my desk picking up paperclips.