From the Heart of the Martha Stewart Stay-at-Home Mom Type

Rumor has it that many moms are jealous of the Martha-Stewart Stay-at-Home Mom Type. I wouldn't know, because I happen to be that type, and so I haven't experienced those feelings personally. But from what I read in magazines and from what I see on the faces of some moms I'm acquainted with when they come to my home, I guess it's true. So I thought I would say a few things to ease the discomfort of moms who aren't this type. Namely, moms of my type have our own jealousies of moms of your type.

I worry often that my perfect house and home-cooked-from-scratch dinners are indication (or other people take it as such) that I neglect my children more than mothers who are comfortable doing light housework on an as-needed basis and preparing something quick and easy involving a can of Campbell's Soup and a casserole dish, served up on paper plates. Both houses are sanitary, and both meals are nutritious and delicious, but my way takes considerably more time and the results are: a mere perfect house (not the most important thing in the grand scheme of things, although it keeps me sane and happy, until morning when it is messy again), and a more natural and creative source of sustenance that my two-year-old is not any more likely to eat. I tell her I can't play with her at the moment because Mommy is absorbed in spending two hours making homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast tomorrow. Although I'm going to be happy to serve such a special meal to my family in the morning, and I am thrilled to death that I've perfected the art of making out-of-this-world cinnamon rolls (see my article on "How to Make Perfect Cinnamon Rolls"), is it really more important to make something from scratch that most moms serve out of a Pillsbury can than it is to play with my all-too-quickly-growing-up little girl?