How does she do it?

Sarah Palin, I mean. How does she juggle a baby with special needs, a pregnant 17-year-old daughter, a son going off to Iraq and the campaign for vice president? That's the question my friends, Republicans and Democrats alike, have been debating since John McCain nominated the governor of Alaska as his running mate.

Indeed, how does one grow an extra set of eyes and a second pair of arms while stumping for votes? Those of us who have tried -- who are trying still -- to balance career with children, 4:30 p.m. staff meetings with 6 p.m. football practice, a demanding promotion with a rebellious teenager, are curious about the miracle.

Regardless of what others say, I believe this is a legitimate concern. It's an issue not because she's a woman, mind you, but because she is being presented to us, the electorate, in the bright, shiny gift wrap of being a hockey mom. If Sarah were a Sam selling himself in a home-and-hearth tableau, I'd be inquiring too.

Let's be clear about some things, though. This is not about her daughter, Bristol, who is five months pregnant out of wedlock. What parent has not confronted an unwise choice by a child?

This is not about McCain's move to attract women voters, either. Nor is it about whether she's the most qualified person to hold the No. 2 spot. Political minds will dissect those issues ad nauseum in the coming months.

Today, for now, I'm interested in Palin, the working mom who is aspiring to the biggest promotion of her life. On opposite geographical corners of the United States, we share some similarities. I, too, am the mother of five. Don't hunt, don't keep a gun and the thought of a mooseburger turns my stomach, but I do fish and can navigate a Bass Tender around the treacherous oyster bars of Florida's west coast.

Yet, for all my admiration of Palin as maverick and corruption fighter, I'm taken aback by the choices she has made in other parts of her life. Family values? I guess it depends who is defining them and in what context.

Earlier this year, Palin flew to Dallas to deliver a speech at a Republican governors conference. Eight months pregnant, she left early because she went into labor. She then returned to work three days after giving birth. Now, with a Down syndrome baby who's not even five months old, she's on the campaign trail.

That's supposed to impress me?

It doesn't, not one bit. By all accounts, she has a husband who pitches in and a support system that the average working mother can't afford. Nevertheless, a parent can delegate only so much, and at some point she -- or he -- has to be in on the action.

With three children grown and out of the house, I have the benefit of hindsight. Experience and mistakes have taught me that there are only 24 hours in the day and the laws of physics still do not allow me to be in two places at the same time. I don't know if Gov. Palin has truly learned that, or maybe her Outlook Express simply organizes time better than mine.

I'm withholding judgment for the next two months, though. But if she fails, what kind of consequences will there be for the rest of us mothers who are vying not for the second-highest office in the land but for a job that pays the mortgage with maybe a little left over for college tuition and retirement?

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