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{summary} As President of Youth Intelligence, a marketing consulting firm, host of Style Network's The Modern Girl's Guide to Life, author of a similarly titled book series, columnist for The New York Times Syndicate, and contributing Editor to Cosmopolitan, Jane Buckingham was no stranger to juggling even before her kids came along. As mother to Jack, 6 and Lilia, 4, each day for Jane is its own balancing act. Here she shares her experience. What is a typical day like for you?The craziness comes from the fact that there really is no typical day. I always drive my children to school, drive to work, usually while on a conference call, pack in a few meetings and calls, try to pick up my daughter and take her to lunch, drop her at home, come back for more meetings and work. Some days it might be shooting a TV segment which is great, but that means no kid pick up, which is a bummer. Then pick up my son, if possible, more work, rush home for dinner, play with the kids, put them to bed, then back on the computer to answer emails, finish off presentations, work on any book projects or upcoming TV segments I might have going on...then fall into bed!What is your childcare situation?I have a wonderful nanny who works Monday to Friday and also a housekeeper three days a week. I have a babysitter for Saturday nights. Yes, it's a lot, but without it there is no way I could do what I do!How has your choice of career impacted your ability to juggle work and family?It helps that my job is in some ways very flexible. I'm not 'chained to a desk' nor do I have a boss breathing down my neck to clock in at certain times, but I definitely have a lot of work to get done and deadlines to meet so I often have be at my job even when I would much rather be at a playdate or school pick-up.{pagebreak}At what stage has balancing been the hardest?Probably now! It was easier before my youngest child had her own social life and activities - I could 'show up' for one but now with two active kids it is much harder to find time to be at two after school activities, two playdates, two games, etc. and still have a big job. Plus my husband is traveling more than ever so more pressure is on me to be there which of course I want to be! I think it will get easier when both children are in school for long days, but now is probably the hardest (I hope).You and your husband both have successful careers. How do you split the family/parenting responsibilities? I do everything! Just kidding! He's a great dad. Because he travels a lot, when he is home he will pick up the kids and take them for the afternoon or out to dinner and that's a great time for me to work late with no guilt. He's also definitely the sport guy - I delegate all soccer, tag, football to him. I try but am just not that great so I'm there with band-aids but can be cleaning up or organizing. We try to make big decisions together - on any discipline issues or changes in routines. We also really try to plan vacations in advance, otherwise we find they never happen.Could you have had such a successful career if he was not involved in the child rearing? I would have had a great career but not great kids. He is extremely supportive of me and of what I do. He's very understanding and a huge part of why I am successful.How does Los Angeles impact your ability to balance?Part of why we moved to LA was because it felt easier at the time than living in Manhattan. Although my mother raised me in New York City and did a great job, for me, it's much easier to have a car so I can throw tons of stuff in it, great weather so we aren't constantly bundling the kids up, and a backyard where my kids can play. Also, I can do most of my television appearances and big meetings here. Plus because I do travel, it is usually a safer bet that flights won't be delayed for weather reasons versus New York. I think one key to any city for a working mom- if she can - is to live close to her office. Not having a long commute really helps my life. Having said that, LA is probably a lot more expensive than most cities, has more traffic, and is extremely competitive, but I do love it! {pagebreak}Will you encourage your daughter to work once she becomes a mom?I will encourage her to do what she feels fulfills her most as a person. I hope that includes work because I think work has added an extra dimension to my life. But it has certainly added more pressure to my days. I think she might want to do charity work, or work that isn't as demanding as mine, or take off more time than I did when she has children, but I hope that she finds a career that she is passionate about and doesn't really want to leave entirely. That's what happened to me. I love my children and I love what I do so I try to balance all of it. I think it's great for children to see that women can work, and that women and men have choices.Do you experience any bias from stay at home moms because you are a working mom?From some moms, yes and they can be pretty mean, but from my good friends, no. People include my children and try to help even more when they know I have to work a lot; but they are welcoming when I have more free time. But as a working mom, you do miss out on a lot of the things the stay-at-home moms do - lunches, yoga, trips with their kids...but I think every mom is struggling to find balance. Working moms are trying to spend more time with their kids, stay at home moms are trying to find more ways to stimulate their minds. We are all trying to find that perfect balance and it probably doesn't exist. The best moms aren't judgmental. The moms who question their own choices (working or non) can be a little awful.How do you handle business travel as it relates to your kids? Do you have any rituals that ease the distance when you are away?My husband and I try not to travel on the same night. I used to make trips as short as possible, but now my kids are pretty okay when I go away. I write them a note for every night that I am gone that my husband gives to them and I always call them before they go to bed. I also try not to go away for more than two nights in a row if I can help it. As for me, I just try to get a good night's sleep wherever I am!If you had an extra hour each day how would you spend it?With my kids and my husband. Or sleeping. http://modernmom.com/542/