I have come to the conclusion that when it comes to life as a working mother and the idea of balance, it may just be elusive. We simply can't do it all each and every day and we shouldn't give ourselves a hard time when it doesn't happen, because to put it quite simply, it will drive us to insanity.

What we should try to do is make strides to do our best to be present for those that we love and to chip away at our goals and aspirations in the midst of all of that, and let the former trump the latter. What we should try to do each day is maintain focus on what is most important and realize that compromise will be necessary. Realize that perfection will not be the norm and that dishes in the sink are ok if you are cuddling with your daughter at bedtime instead. What we should realize is that our Facebook status does not need to be updated just because our kid did something cute, it is more important to be present in that moment with them than to Instagram the photo - a valid point made from another online friend of mine recently that I plan to take to heart. It is far more important to gaze into the eyes of my daughter than it is to gaze into the screen of my iPhone.

From my perspective, there are days where I hit it out of the park in the "balancing it all" department and there are days where I fail epically and it seems more recently, the balance shift has become even more difficult for me since I became a part-time work at home mom. I find that my laundry piles get bigger (and stay that way longer) and I'm on my computer late into the night some evenings so I can complete my work, because I didn't get up quite early enough or the two hour nap didn't quite happen. But that's become my compromise so I can work from home, because I like to work and it helps my family meet our financial needs. I work nights so I can play in the back yard with my daughters in the afternoon and I wait until the weekends to tackle laundry so the husband and I can hammer it out tag-team style.

I don't think there is a clear cut answer to the "balance" question because work-life balance truly is an evolving process and I can say from experience that I am constantly reevaluating where I put my energy. I'm always looking at whether what I'm doing is worth the time I spend away from my girls. Ultimately, we have to do what's best for the family as a whole and sometimes that means working to help support that family or working towards a personal goal, or both. At the end of the day if we communicate openly to our children as we navigate through our working life they will understand. Additionally, if we make sure they get the time, love and affection they need and deserve, then they will have no doubt that our hearts are with them and we will have no doubt that they understand and that their hearts are with us...

I’ve noticed how women so often feel caught between their interests in family life and their creative or career aspirations. I wonder if it has to be this way. What would have to change—in your life, in people’s attitudes, or in our society—for women to have an easier time managing work-life balance? Share your answer below and like Smarter Life Better Planet on Facebook to be entered to win a Haier microwave for your family along with an additional microwave to be donated to the Food Bank for New York City!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Haier. The opinions and text are all mine. Official Contest Rules.