My life as a SAHM

That title pretty much sums my experience of being at home with Avery. Why? Well for starters, 2 months ago, I didn’t even know there was an abbreviation for Stay at Home Mom. I thought you were just a mom who got to stay at home. And to some extent I am, but, as the acronym suggests, being a “SAHM” is a unique career that, until you’re in it, you really can’t begin to understand.

How can I put this in non-SAHM’s terms…Have you ever had (or, most likely, left) a job where you felt like the people you worked with were children, and you spent most of your time cleaning up their messes? I think you know where I’m going with this! This morning, for example, I thought I had discovered a way to carve out seven minutes for myself to do the dishes. Avery has taken a recent interest in Posh’s food bowl, and learned several weeks ago not to touch the water (or eat the food), but to take out the food and then let Posh eat it off the floor. Talk about killing two birds with one stone – dog and baby entertained. About 45 seconds into doing the dishes I discovered Avery sitting in a small pond of dog-mouth infested water, sprinkled with soggy pellets of food.

There’s a little taste for you, but that’s a pretty typical experience here in SAHM land. Now, I must point out that my current experience isn’t really standard, since I’m in a sort of limbo here looking for a new job, and am also without a car. I’m sure my super-SAHM peers find fantastic activities to keep them and their children entertained, and have projects and goals that keep the days from getting repetitive. And while I sometimes do have a car and manage an outing, I really have no goals for myself other than the following: keep the house clean, keep the kid clean, make dinner and look for jobs.

Obviously I’m not naming the LONG list of advantages to being at home, but that’s not the point of this particular post. The point is to let the world know once and for all that staying at home is among the most challenging of jobs (and I only have ONE KID)! Today I woke up and was on duty at 6:30 am, despite a stomachache and the remains of a stubborn cold. No calling in sick on this assignment! I was greeted by a wildly energetic 16 month old with a steaming hot surprise in her diaper, as I am with the dawning of each new day. Joy. I’ve also learned that the more I’ve been home, the more attached Avery is to me, which has resulted in a little girl who demands nothing less than momma’s full attention when she’s awake, making even the smallest of tasks a whole new challenge. I’ll clock out around 6:30 or 7 tonight, probably put in another 30 minutes so I can check off “keep the house clean” from my to-do list, and call it a day.

Am I complaining? Absolutely not! This particular job boasts some very exclusive benefits, including therapeutic fits of unstoppable laughter, energy-boosting tickle fights, and tons of affirming hugs and peanut butter flavored kisses. But if I’m being honest, when I learned that I was going to be at home starting January 1st, I may have thought to myself “Aaaah, what a nice, restful vacation this will be for me.”

Don’t worry, I stand corrected!