From Working Mom to Stay at Home Mom

I believe being a stay at home mom is truly unrecognized as an occupation. We don't get paid with money and our efforts are rarely appreciated.

I believe being a stay at home mom is one of the hardest jobs that exists. Some people do not realize how hard it is to stay at home all day-every day.

I was a working mom for five years before I became a stay at home mom. I used to envy the mothers who got to stay home with their kids, in fact, sometimes I was resentful towards them. I had to put my kids in daycare and go to work for eight hours, sometimes more ,f ive days a week to make a living. By the time I would get home at the end of the day I was exhausted. Yet still, I had to make supper, bathe the kids, help with homework, and so on. There was not much time left for one on one time with my kids. I felt like I was just going through the motions each day with no time to enjoy life and my children. It was all about making money.

When I got pregnant with my third child, I ended up losing my job due to my attendance. I was able to collect unemployment compensation and I was able to stay at home with my 2 kids because it was not a financial strain on the family. It was a big change for me. I was used to getting up at 4:30 am and starting my job at 6:30 am. My work day usually ended at 2:30pm. Then off to the daycare to pick up my youngest son and come home and do all the household chores and get ready to do the same thing the next day.

I have found that being a stay at home mom is not really something to be envied. The house gets dirtier and you are constantly cleaning and picking up stuff after the kids. Some days I feel like all I do is dishes, laundry, vacuuming, cooking, and picking up toys.

Then when I had my new baby daughter, it was lot more work. I had to take care of a newborn on top of taking care of a two year old all day. Add feedings, changing, and dealing with a newborn to my already busy day. I missed having a job to go to. I missed the adult interaction and conversation everyday. When you are at home everyday with children it gets to you. I believe that when you are a working mom, you are getting a break from the domestic life, enjoying some form of adult interaction, and you also receive a paycheck.