I am a working stay-at-home mom.
Yes, you heard that right. Growing up, I have always wanted to be a mom. When my son was born in March of 2020, I had 17 total weeks of leave. Towards the end of my leave, I dreaded going back to work and leaving him at daycare or home with my husband. I was selfish and wanted as much time with him while he was as little as I could. My husband and I decided I would leave my job and be a full-time stay-at-home mom. I couldn’t have been happier! After 9 months of being at home full time, I started to get stir crazy and needed some interaction with adults and others outside of my house. I decided to go back to my job and became a working mom, and so we began a hectic schedule.
We run on one car and sometimes it makes things difficult, but we make it work! We also decided not to put our son in daycare as that is a huge cost we would rather not pay. My husband works the first shift and I work the second/third shift. We are on opposite shifts, so someone is always home with our son. Neither of us works the weekends. We keep that time to spend with each other. Although it isn’t ideal to not see your spouse Monday through Friday, it’s what works best for us, and we don’t mind it. We know how much it is worth it to not have to spend the money on daycare. And we get to soak in as much with our little man as we can.
Making it work for you
- If you and your spouse can work opposite shifts so someone is always home with the kiddos, I highly recommend it! One of us is always at home to be able to capture moments and memories that our little man gives us. At first, my husband and I struggled with not spending enough time together. We have since learned that a balance of being together and having a good job to go to helps balance everything.
- If daycare is what works best for you and your family, there is nothing wrong with that. Every family has its own thing that works best and, not every job is flexible with hours and shifts. I am VERY thankful that my job is extremely flexible. I can pick my shifts/hours as I go so if we have appointments or I would like a day off, I just don’t pick up a shift for that day.
Housework
- Between me and my husband, we get all the housework done and don’t have specific chores for each one. When cleaning needs to be done, we do it. Some days are our “lazy days”, and we spend them relaxing or being outdoors and not worrying about cleaning. Everyone needs those days so don’t worry about always cleaning. The cleaning will never go away. I have had to constantly remind myself of this and I am slowly getting better at it. It’s okay for your house to look lived in, it doesn’t have to be spotless!
Being a working mom and a stay-at-home parent is a lot to take on between both me and my husband. It is a balance that has taken a lot to learn and get used to, but I’d say we have it down and have things working the best we can. If this is something you and your family can do, enjoy it!
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