Editor's Notebook: Returning to Plymouth MN Patch

Hello Plymouth! It's been a while!

I'm glad to report that I've returned as Plymouth MN Patch Editor after being on maternity leave.

Though I haven't really been away from Plymouth since I live here. My husband and I have started our family here. Our son Henry was born Jan. 29, 2013, and life has never been the same. Every day is an adventure.

And now I'm starting my new adventure as a working mom and returning to my work covering this wonderful community for Patch.

My how time flies when you have a baby! I suppose people say that a lot, but it really seems to be true. Though the pregnancy and labor were not what I expected, nothing ever is. I'm simply grateful to have a happy and healthy boy who continues to amaze me everyday. Yes, he's only a baby, but being a first time mom I'm amazed by how much he grows and develops and is becoming his own little person everyday. And I'm sure that amazement will never go away.

I can't wait for him to discover the world outside his home. We live in a great area where he can explore the outdoors and bustling city. I'm glad he'll get a chance to experience so many different things and I want him to enjoy everything his community has to offer.

I look forward to bringing him to events in the coming months and years, like, Plymouth on Parade, Music in Plymouth, the Farmer's Market, the Fire and Ice Festival and much more. 

My husband said it well when we were walking away with our arms full from the Kids' Garage sale at the Plymouth Creek Center on Sunday, "It's nice to have a job where you know what's going on in your own community so you can know about things like this."

Yes, it is. I may even be so bold as to say that it's nice to have a Patch in Plymouth as a simple resource to find out what's going on. I have a feeling that I'd be on Plymouth MN Patch even if I wasn't editor, just to look at what's going on. And I hope if you're reading this, you feel the same way. Because Patch is an online community where we hope people take ownership, contribute to the conversation and share information. Photos, videos, comments, event postings, announcements, Local Voices--these are all supported by the community. Your voice can be heard by those who want to know what's going on around them. 

So what's going on around me? I can't wait to share it with Henry. With the warmer weather, we'll go for a walk on the paths that wind around beautiful ponds in the park by our house.

I'll push the stroller with him in it and show him where his parents got married in Plymouth. Then we'll go to the park where he's going to learn how to swing and go down the slide for the first time. 

I see this all in my near future. I can see it from my living room window even. I'm glad to be returning to work during the spring when everything seems to be coming alive again. People are smiling as they walk down the street and the sun stays out longer. Hopefully the snow is gone for a while.

And I know, coming back to work, I'll be looking at things through a new set of eyes. The future and work towards it, is now even more important to me. City work, schools, safety, quality of life, financial planning, these are just a few of the things that I have a new found respect for and stake in.

As a reporter I've always known everything is a work in progress and doesn't come easy and as a new mom I've learned nothing worth doing is easily done. I look forward to working in the community I live in and as a new mom I'm glad it's here.

It's good to be back.