"Of course not all women can be at home full time. It’s one thing to acknowledge that; it’s quite another to paint it as the ideal. To call it the ideal, is to claim that children IDEALLY would spend LESS time around their mothers. This is madness. Pure madness. It isn’t ideal, and it isn’t neutral. The more time a mother can spend raising her kids, the better. The better for them, the better for their souls, the better for the community, the better for humanity. Period."I wouldn't trade being a stay-at-home mom for all the tea in China! It's the "job" I always wanted before I even knew I wanted it. But make no mistake, SAHM's don't live on a pedestal but rather a shoestring (budget, that is) and often with little thanks or even acknowledgment of the sacrifices they make. We still live in a country where it IS possible to stay home with your child(ren) almost regardless of your income. There was a time when our income was only $20,000 a year with 3 children, the oldest only in kindergarten at the time...and I stayed home. We weren't on WIC and my husband worked while also taking grad classes. Classes that (once he found a job, no matter how menial) we paid for upfront without taking out further student loans. We've yet to buy our first house but if that is the price we pay for having me home with our children, I'm happy to make that sacrifice! It is worth every penny even on our worst days. I'd love a break. I welcome a break! But as a general rule, I love spending time with my kids. They are such a treasure! Children were never meant to be a burden, but a blessing...probably the best retirement plan you could have! :)
I don't say this to make those of you ladies (and gents) who work outside the home feel guilty for not being home with your kids. I think for most of us (or at least those of you who follow my blog ;)) that's where we want to be! I only wish to encourage you that if staying home is what you really want to do, it can be done! It is possible! It will take sacrifices financially- maybe that even means selling your house, but for most of us it would only take reigning in other expenses like not eating out very often, growing as much food as you can yourself, buying used everything and less of it, downgrading your phone (gasp!) and finding other ways to cut corners (couponing 101). You can even homeschool for free!
Some day I plan to write a book entitled "I Survived a Single-wide". To be honest (and I never imagined I'd say this), out of the seven homes we've lived in over the course of our married life, that single-wide nears the top of the list of faves for a variety of reasons. Naturally, it helps that it was located close to my extended family but #2- it met our needs and #3- we could afford it. Less financial stress breeds a happier home, I say. :)
Through the generosity of a family member who procured free lodging for us (thank you!!) and by ringing out our grocery budget until it cried for mercy, we were even able to take a vacation to Disney World that year! Praise the Lord, God is good. So, my point is that we make time and money for what is important to us and that we have a tendency to all too often confuse want with need. We wanted to go to Disney World (at least me and the kids did. Justin had never gone so he didn't really know what he was missing. Even now, and I don't understand this, I don't think he fell in love with it like we did. ;)). Had we not been given the precious gift of lodging, we would have kept saving until we had enough to provide our own and I can guarantee it wouldn't have been as nice. Super 8? If it meant the difference between experiencing the magic of Disney or staying home, you betcha that it's good enough for me!
So, pay off those credit cards and tear them up. Get yourself out of bondage and enslaved to your debt and start living large on a shoestring budget, loving and cuddling those precious babies! Anyone can find a job, however "important" or "mundane" it is, but only YOU can be your babies' momma! ;)
