On being a stay-at-home mom
Let me just clarify that I don't stay at home -- I go lots
of places. But I don't have a job outside the family. My reasons specifically
do not include "tradition" or religion. Here's why I do it.
It's fun
Being a stay-at-home mom (SAHM) is gobs more fun than
my previous job in the corporate world. No matter how much work being a
mom is (and believe me, it's exhausting), it's the most personally satisfying
work (and play) I've ever done. Which means it's not like work. And I don't
spend every hour doing mom things -- I find a little time to play with
web pages and read books. I'm not a martyr in exile from the career world.
I love my job.
It doesn't cost much
I won't present the usual laundry list of expenses that
change when one parent stays home. I'll just say that we looked at what
I'd have left after child care, and realized that I'd be taking home just
a little more per hour than I made in any of my college jobs. No, thanks!
I'd rather just spend those eight hours a day with my family.
The transition to one income has been unnoticeable for
us because we've never lived up to our total income. Most of our "disposable"
income is invested for our retirement. We look forward to being a stay-at-home
parenting team long before the typical retirement age.
It just feels right
I think my kids will have a better life if at least one
of their parents is here at home all day while they're growing up. I'm
not evangelizing for a SAHM "movement" -- everyone's situation is unique
and we all have a right to balance our lives as we choose, or as we are
able. If the answer were absolute, we'd all be working or we'd all be staying
at home. I decided to focus on just one career, and I can only say that
I feel the rightness of it in my bones.
It will make homeschooling easier
Read my homeschooling page
for more about my plans to homeschool.
Stay-at-home mom links
(coming
soon)
return to All About Me