The following blog post was written by Avanade alum Hanneke Troost.

This year I will celebrate my third Mother’s day as, well, a mother! My two boys are too young to think about gifts and cards, but I bet they will make something at daycare – a colorful trinket or paper memento – that I will treasure forever. As a working mother, my sons are spending four days at daycare. They love it and so do I. With a ‘bye’, ‘mommy work’ and ‘mommy kiss’ my oldest son says farewell every day. The youngest only gives a big smile. That’s our daily routine – one for which I am so grateful.

A few years ago, I couldn’t imagine I would be a mom one day and able to continue to build my career at Avanade. Now it’s a reality and I can’t imagine it any other way. As every mother with young children will tell you: it’s a busy life raising kids, keeping up with the day to day household tasks, spending time with your spouse, maintaining social life and trying to make some time for yourself. Oh, and of course continuing to work hard at a job you love!

Having two children in 13 months and maintaining my career was a challenge. As a working mom you really need to plan to make it work, but it’s possible. I’m happy to have an employer like Avanade that supports working mothers by offering flexibility in how you work. With strong communication between myself, my colleagues and my managers, I’m able to create a schedule that allows me excel at my job and maximize my time with my family. That may mean catching up during nap time or checking in on work after the kids are in bed, but the extra time with my family makes it all worth it.

Being a mom is just one of my roles in life and it’s by far the most special one. But I’m also a wife, an employee, friend and just me. I love my work and my colleagues. In some ways, having a job makes me a better mother. The benefit of a digital workplace is that I can connect when I need to and then can disconnect and focus on my family. And I find that I’m more productive and more focused now that I’m working this way – it allows me to prioritize what’s important at that time and get things done! And vice versa – when I’m done with a long day at the office, there’s nothing better than returning home to be enthusiastically welcomed by my boys!

This year I’m celebrating my third Mother’s day and I’m so happy I committed to making it work – both for my family, my career, and for me! I’m thankful for Avanade, my supportive husband and the daycare my kids love so much. I couldn’t do this alone, and so I share this Mother’s day celebration with all those people who have helped me be the best working mom I can be.

Happy Mother’s Day!