Oh! To Be a Stay-At-Home Mom

I had to call in to work today.  My son is sick, which is rare.  He's not quite old enough (in my opinion) to be left home alone when he's sick unlike my high school daughter.  It was quiet in the house.  My husband at work, my daughter at school and my son sleeping with the dog.  I had a thought.  This could have been my life everyday if I had the opportunity to be a stay-at-home mom.  I could have this quiet every morning before starting my daily routine.  I would have time to scramble eggs for my kids in the morning if they wanted them.  I wouldn't have to call my boss when my son was home sick from school. 

It's the quilt and occasional resentment I deal with as a working mom.  My husband and I were never in a financial position to make that an option years ago.  Plus, I think as a child of divorced parents, I have always felt the need to have my own job just in case things ever went sour in my own marriage.  My mom was a stay-at-home mom and I watched her go out in the world and look for work when I was in middle school, preparing to be a single mom.  She said to me once, "Always have a skill.  Always have a way to make your own money."  Partially words of wisdom to her young daughter and partially kicking herself in hindsight.  Maybe it was then that I realized I would be a working mom out of fear of depending on someone else.  Who knows.  I just know that as a grown women looking back, I would have liked to have had the choice to stay at home.  Avoid the guilt and occasional resentment as a working mom.

Ultimately, though, your kids have a path in life either way.  They are destined to do certain things and make certain choices whether or not you had time to scramble eggs in the morning for them.  My mom was a stay-at-home mom to my sister and I and a working mom to my younger brother later in life.  We all turned out pretty great.  We've all made our way into the world and made our choices and live our own lives happily.  I have said in the past that home is a verb.  It's what you do within the walls you live that matters most.  You can raise great kids in a shack or mansion; as a working mom or a stay-at-home mom; as a strict or liberal parent.  It's about doing what's best and or necessary for your family.

Photo courtesy of Lina Blair