My Life Between Coffee Breaks: A Short Memoir

There is a version of my life that looks very polished from the outside. The finished makeup. The structured calendar. The carefully worded blog posts. But if you zoom in, really zoom in, you will find that my days are stitched together in the margins. In the in-between moments. In the space between one coffee and the next.

Most Tuesdays begin the same way. Quietly. Before the world starts demanding things from me.

 

 

6:00am – The Ritual Before the Rush

My alarm goes off before the sun has properly committed to rising. There is something sacred about those early minutes, when the house is still and I can hear my own thoughts before they are drowned out by responsibility. I make coffee, strong and unnecessary, and sit for a few moments longer than I should.

Makeup is rarely rushed. It is my small act of control before the chaos begins. Foundation blended, brows shaped, bronzer tapped in place. It is not vanity. It is armour. By the time I hear my son stirring through the monitor, I feel ready to begin.

 

7:00am – Mother First, Always

The next hour belongs entirely to him. Breakfast negotiations, tiny socks that refuse to cooperate, the joyful chaos of a toddler who has woken up ready to conquer the world. He does not care about deadlines or marketing strategies. He cares about cereal and cuddles.

There is a softness to this part of my day that I refuse to rush. Even when I am watching the clock, I am present. His little hand in mine as we head out the door feels like the most important contract I will ever sign.

 

9:00am – The Corporate Shift

By nine, I am in a completely different world. As Head of Marketing, my inbox rarely rests. Meetings, strategy sessions, budgets, performance metrics. It is structured, fast paced, and demands precision.

Some people are surprised that I love this side of my life as much as I do. Marketing is creative, yes, but it is also analytical. It requires decisiveness. I thrive in that space. There is something deeply satisfying about solving problems, about steering a team, about watching numbers respond to a plan we built from scratch.

 

12:30pm – Coffee Break Reality Checks

Lunchtime is rarely a true break. It is usually spent responding to emails while eating something functional rather than exciting. Occasionally, I will scroll through notes on my phone, fragments of dialogue for my novel or ideas for a future blog post.

It is in these coffee break windows that my other life exists. The writing life. The one where characters demand attention and fictional men are far more dramatic than my real world colleagues. Switching between the two keeps me sharp. It also keeps me sane.

 

3:00pm – The Juggle Becomes Visible

By mid-afternoon, the balancing act becomes more obvious. A Slack notification pings while my phone lights up with a message about nursery pickup. A reminder about a home delivery competes with a marketing deadline.

There are moments when it feels like spinning plates. But there is also a strange rhythm to it. I have learned to compartmentalise without disconnecting. Each role has its own energy, and I move between them more fluidly than I once thought possible.

 

5:30pm – Back to the Heart of It

When I walk back through the door at home, the corporate edge softens. Shoes off. Laptop closed. My son barrels towards me with the enthusiasm of someone who has had the best day of his life without me.

Dinner is messy and imperfect. Conversations are fragmented between toddler interruptions. But this is the grounding part of my day. The reminder that beyond performance metrics and word counts, this is what matters most.

 

8:30pm – The Writer Wakes Up

When the house finally goes quiet, a different kind of work begins. Sometimes I open my laptop to draft new scenes. Other evenings are reserved for edits from my editor or emails with my agent. The novel that began as therapy now feels like a calling.

There is something indulgent about writing at night. The world feels smaller and more focused. It is just me and the page. This is where my imagination stretches its legs, where I build lives I will never live but somehow understand intimately.

 

10:30pm – The Quiet Inventory

By the end of the day, I am tired in the way only full days can make you. Not just physically, but mentally. I run through everything I did, everything I forgot, everything I will attempt tomorrow. And yet, I wouldn’t trade it. Since having my son, getting this fantastic job, progressing with my novel and helping so many budding companies, my sleep has been better than ever before. It makes me feel like I’ve achieved so much, so I can rest well.

 

Why I Love the Chaos

From the outside, it might look overwhelming. Motherhood. Corporate leadership. Writing novels. Blogging. Renovating a home. Maintaining friendships. Guarding my mental health. It is a lot.

But each piece feeds the other. Marketing sharpens my strategic mind. Writing nourishes my creativity. Motherhood softens me. Blogging connects me. The chaos is not accidental. It is chosen.

My life does not exist in grand sweeping moments. It lives between coffee breaks. In the five minutes before a meeting. In the ten minutes before bedtime. In the stolen hour after everyone else is asleep. And in those spaces, I find fulfilment.