This is not the year Ashley Proctor saw for herself.
In April 2017, she was pregnant with her second child. She knew juggling a new baby and her husband's bid for Butler County prosecutor would be challenging.
Especially with a 3-year-old at home and her own demanding job at First Midwest Bank as assistant vice president and credit administration officer.
But Proctor didn't realize she would be doing this alone, with a third child on the way.
Proctor and her husband, Kacey, were at lunch when he got the call. His National Guard unit was being deployed and he was going overseas for the first time.
Kacey would be gone for a year. He would miss Christmas, a fourth birthday, a first birthday, their youngest son's first steps and first words, and everything else here at home.
Military rules prevent him from participating in the campaign in any way.
"He hasn't been home since Thanksgiving," Proctor said, near the end of her workday at her Westwood Boulevard office in the main bank branch, before picking her sons up from daycare. "He gets to come home for the birth of the baby for 10 days and has to go back until the end of September.
"It's very stressful. ... There's a lot more on my shoulders than I realized going into it."
Proctor's days mean juggling what can be emotional mornings with Mason, 4, and Lincoln, 11 months, before going in to work to oversee a busy loan department. That's followed by evenings and weekends running a campaign for the job the couple has dreamed about since Kacey was in law school.
Mason especially struggles to understand why their father is away.
"We tell him dad has to go there to keep the bad guys out of where we live," said Proctor, who is able to text, call and video chat weekly with her husband. "Every time, Mason will say, 'Do we have all those bad guys caught yet, dad? Can you come home?' and it's kind of heartbreaking.
"I understand over the course of our lifetime, a year is nothing, but for a 4-year-old, a year is just eternity."
Kacey is primarily stationed out of Kuwait, but travels all over the Middle East. He is acting as a brigade TAC officer on this deployment.
Kacey can't communicate with his family when he's traveling to and from other locations, and can't warn his wife that he won't be in touch.
"It's very panic inducing," Proctor admitted.
Their third child is due Aug. 15, a week after the primary election that will decide if Kacey comes back as Butler County prosecutor.
When asked how she makes it all work, Proctor laughs, "I don't know if it is working. I hope it's working," she says, laughing again. "Sometimes I feel like I'm failing at everything."
One of those moments came after she had just received a pat on the back at work, only to learn Mason's day had not gone as well.
"I was feeling really good about myself, and I get to daycare and I had to sign an incident form because Mason had been a holy terror that day," Proctor recalled. "I'm like, okay, I'm not that great then. It kind of brings you down."
A focus on what's truly important helps make the difference, she said.
It is something an early mentor stressed, the 33-year-old said.
"Laura told me, it's great to achieve things in your career, and it's great to achieve things in your personal life, but at the end of the day, if you're not with your family and you're not growing your family and helping your children, then it doesn't mean anything," Proctor said. "She was very, very instrumental in saying, yes, you can be phenomenal at your job, but you need to be more phenomenal at home."
What Proctor loves most about herself today is the relationship she has with her family.
"I do feel like I give it all to my family, like they have a lot they could learn from me," said Proctor. "I try very hard in every aspect of my life, but I feel like if it's going to come down to one thing, I'm going to make my family work better."
She's also accepted for this year, there will be no time for herself.
Proctor has known her husband since they were children. They married in 2010.
Their plan was always to return home, which made this run for prosecutor a natural choice, Proctor said.
Kacey is also very driven, and has always said he could never see himself on the other side of the table, she said.
"He respects the defense attorneys. Both sides have a job to do in order to seek justice, but he said if he was going to be in law, he was going to be on the prosecution side," Proctor said.
It helps now that Proctor and her husband are used to the stress and responsibility that come with being driven to succeed in their careers.
"The more responsibility you have, the less a day off is a day off," Proctor said. "My maternity leave with Lincoln, I was in this role at the bank. I got calls. I got texts.
"Sometimes I want to complain, but it goes with the territory, the higher up you move."
Proctor would like to be able to share both her successes and her mistakes with others starting out on the same path she has traveled.
"I was very, very thankful I had someone to give me advice. I would like to be able to do that, especially for the younger girls," Proctor said.
The support of family, friends and co-workers are helping make this year easier, Proctor said, as her shared birthday with Lincoln approaches June 16.
"I have really great mom friends who put everything into perspective. I hope we do that for one another, because we are real with one another and we do let each other see the nasty ugly side of what it's like to be a mom," she said. "I understand that every mom probably has her doubts."
An aunt and uncle, along with friends have also helped oversee the campaign.
"I've got a phenomenal family," Proctor said.
First Midwest Bank has been very supportive of her efforts to juggle taking care of her children along while Kacey is deployed, Proctor continued.
"They have been so understanding. I know you don't have that everywhere," Proctor said. "This is a big part of how I feel I can juggle everything. I have a good husband, good kids, a good job and a great support system. They make me feel like I'm not failing."