Hey! I figured I’d write two days in a row, since I probably won’t again for a few days. I had another session with Jeremy this morning (my personal trainer), but it wasn’t nearly as hard as usual. We normally do supersets the entire time and we didn’t do any today. I can’t say I really minded, but then again, it’s kind of nice to go get my butt kicked for 30 minutes without having to think about it. I’ll go back tomorrow though, so it’s not that big of a deal. I’ve been doing legs pretty frequently and I think they’re starting to get a little tired. I feel like I need a real leg rest for a good week or so to just let everything get back to normal.

Yesterday was a tough day at home. Jackson was so difficult and didn’t want to nap for his second nap, which I usually let slide. But I had woken him up early from his first nap so we could get that second nap, and I wasn’t about to make it until 7pm on an hour of sleep before 10:30am. So, I was irritated, even though he’s cute.

So last night, Jon was like, “Why don’t you just go do something?” I normally just stay home because I don’t have much to do in the evenings since I don’t know anybody, but I went and looked at stuff at Marshall’s and Kids to Kids. I drove out on a back road to the next town west of here and tried Amazing Sweet Spot (I think), that’s a little shop that basically makes fair food. The food was decent and I wasn’t a big fan of my strawberry shortcake at all, but the people were super nice. Still nice to get out, anyway!

I just finished up one assignment and just need Jon to read my last paper tonight so I can make edits and submit it. Then I’m ALL DONE for the semester! I had planned on trying to go to the beach today if I had time, but I thought I’d spend the day watching a movie for school. Turns out, I couldn’t watch any for free, so I chose to write about a movie I’ve already seen a bunch instead. Worked out! I’m considering either cleaning (probably not going to happen), running out to DSW (might happen), or just watching TV and hanging out on the couch (will definitely happen before anything else).

Next week, I think I might take Jackson to Magnolia Plantation, which is way closer than I thought it was. It’s supposed to be nice and I figure we should do it before it gets too hot. I’m also taking Jackson to Bee City (not totally sure what this is, but they have a petting zoo and Jackson loves animals) on Friday with Nora and Lisa next week, so I’m excited to get out of the house and do stuff.

I’m working this Saturday (in GA, obviously) from 7-3 and then I think the girls are getting together Saturday night. I’m finally get my hair cut on Sunday and can’t wait! I always let it go for so long and then I decide one day that I’ve had enough and I need it cut ASAP! That’s exactly what happened. I’m thinking I might go a little shorter. I’ve been considering going shoulder length or even shorter, but I doubt I will. I need to be able to do ponytails in Iceland. Sunday night, I’m going out to eat with my mom and dad for my birthday dinner (my 31st birthday is Monday). Then Monday, I may try to pick up 7-11am, or I may just go the gym in the morning and head home after that. We don’t technically -need- the money, so it’s hard to just want to pick up when I FINALLY get free time in GA, but we also haven’t saved much money (although, we have paid off a lot of Jon’s car). So I feel like if I want to go to Iceland in May, road trip to Wisconsin with Jackson (and hopefully Jon!) in June, road trip to Canada with Gina in July, go to Scotland in October with Jon, and maybe go to South Africa in December (or possibly Cambodia on a medical relief trip), then I better work if I can. Even if it’s $100 extra dollars, that $100 more than we have now. I feel like I’ll be back to work in September though, but realistically, between doing my internship, doing the assignments associated with my masters, driving to SC to see Jon with a kid, and working enough to pay for daycare, I doubt I’ll be making a whole lot extra. But I’ll probably be too busy to spend a whole lot too!

Just a random last thought- I bought a plain gray tank top last night (it’s looser). It was cheap at Marshall’s but Jon was like, “Do you NEED that?!” (he was kidding- he really never questions how I spend money, which is good because as seen above, I spend all of our money on vacations for myself). This whole mom thing makes getting dressed tough. I’m actually finally super content with my body again, minus the belly a little bit but that is totally because I eat bread and I will never have a flat stomach if I eat bread, but now I have a one year old! With dirty hands! I have so many clothes in my closet and I look at them and I’m like, “Um, no. I’m not letting sticky fingers all over that shirt.” Not that they’re even super fancy or anything, but I don’t want all my clothes getting ruined by little kids. Most of the clothes I have, while not fancy, were still not super cheap since I stopped buying cheap clothes and went for higher quality clothes (not like, $100, but most of my shirts are like, $30- still too much for me to want to ruin by guacamole covered sticky baby hands). But I also get tired of wearing Target v-necks (I actually don’t get tired of them, but I do sometimes want to dress a little nicer). I just feel like a frump all that time. Probably because I come home from the gym in the morning, shower, only wash my hair every few days, throw on underwear and a sleep shirt, and only put gym shorts and a bra on to go get Jackson. I just need some decent, cheaper shirts that I don’t mind getting ruined just in case Jackson ruins them. I also have a lot of tighter tank tops and that’s just not happening. This mom wants clothes that aren’t super clingy. I just want to look put together, but be comfortable, and be in clothes that are cheap enough to not stress over Jackson putting his hands all over. And to have something that I’m comfortable in other than v-necks.

Alright, time to go be lazy for one last day. Since school is almost over, I’m hoping to get out and spend many more days exploring and being active. And hopefully finding a pool or somewhere with water to spend our days in. I think I might just buy a little plastic kiddy pool. I think Jackson would love that!

Hey guys! Not much happening around these parts, of course. But the SEMESTER IS OVER SOON! I hope to have everything submitted by Thursday night so that when I go to Atlanta Friday, I won’t have to worry about anything. I actually haven’t done much for school this week since I’m waiting for Jon to proofread my paper and I need to just watch a movie for a quick assignment, but I’ll get that done tonight.

It’s gloomy out today so Jackson and I are just hanging out at home. Lisa and Nora couldn’t meet for our usual playdate, so we’re chilling at home. I thought about going to the children’s museum still, but downtown Charleston flooded yesterday morning and I have no idea how long that lasts for here. Figured I’d hate to get all the way down there after packing up and have a road be closed. The playground will obviously be all wet. I don’t need to run errands… I thought about playing in the driveway, but I’m not wearing pants… Hah. So I put in Moana (I decided we can do one movie a week, otherwise we keep the TV off if Jackson is up) and Jackson has been playing all day pretty well by himself while I research safe cleaning and body care products.

I worked out Saturday, Sunday, and Monday after staying home sick on Thursday and Friday. Saturday was a quick workout since Jon went too and Jackson was a little fussy in childcare. But Sunday, Jon stayed home and I was 1 of 5 people at the gym! It was wonderful! So I got in a nice, long workout. And despite it being busy on Monday (as always), I ended up getting in another good, long workout. I tend to only stay for about 45 minutes, but I decided to start staying longer if I feel like it. I’m sore this morning and I’m not usually, so that’s good! I’ve started doing a lot more ab work (compared to nothing that I was doing). I have been feeling some sort of pull in my left lower abdomen. Not sure if it’s from my c-section scar, but it almost seems like it’s in a different spot. Hopefully I just pulled something and it’ll go away.

Saturday afternoon, Jon and I took Jackson to the beach! Jackson has always loved the beach, but not on Saturday! It was really windy and crowded, so I think maybe it was too much for him. We took him in the water and he was not interested at all. He just clung to Jon the whole time. I got to play in the water and it was so much fun to be in the waves again! I seriously love the beach. I can go for an hour and be all set though. I’m not an all day beach person at all. We seriously were probably there for 20 minutes and decided to go home since Jackson was not enjoying it at all. But it was still nice to get out!

Sunday afternoon, we went to the James Island County Park. They have a big splash pad, so Jackson and I played in that. I wish we had been more prepared (with sunscreen and a swim diaper at least), but it was super fun. I’m hoping to go during the week this month before school lets out. The county parks here are seriously so awesome! I wish Georgia had stuff like this! They have a full water park too and campsites and everything. It’s crazy.

I decided I think I might try to see a therapist here this summer. I feel so much more anxious still, despite cutting back on caffeine (I just drink decaf coffee unless I really need a boost) and working out more regularly. I really think my brain is just understimulated here and I focus on totally random things too much. Like what if something happens to the drug test I have to take for school, and then the want me to take a new one right after Iceland and I fail for my Xanax that I take when I fly and can’t do my internship? Or what if something comes back wrong on my documentation? Or what if they question my out of state status since USAA screwed me over by canceling my car insurance accidentally and getting my registration suspended so I had to switch my car to SC? None of this will probably happen, but I get so anxious about it and even though I can reason it out, I still stay so anxious about it and keep going with these scenarios that probably won’t happen. It’s really annoying. I feel totally fine during the day and even most nights, but some nights I just can’t sleep because I get SO anxious over these crazy scenarios. And really, none of it matters. Like, yeah it’d suck to have my internship delayed and we plan to try for another baby after I finish, but even if I got kicked out of the program (worst case scenario- even though in my mind, I totally imagine it’d be jail and like 60 Days In and I’d be claustrophobic locked in a jail cell), I’m STILL a nurse. I can STILL make a good living and I’ll STILL have Jon and Jackson, and that’s really all I need. So, there is no reason to be anxious about this stuff. But clearly, if reason could just get rid of anxiety, nobody would ever have it.

Anyway, I should be off to pay attention to Jackson. I’ve been on the computer most of the day getting stuff done (or looking up random stuff on the EWG website), but he’s been playing so well that I hate interrupting him.

I never really log onto here after Jackson’s bedtime! But I had a pretty lazy day today and I’m not cleaning!

Last night, I ate quite a bit around 8:30. I was hungry and decided I really need to increase what I eat for dinner to continue gaining weight/muscle. Jon was out of town, but I headed up to bed at 10:30. And then I slept off and on all evening. I thought maybe I was anxious from him being gone (I rarely sleep without him home), but then I realized I was just feeling nauseous and my hips were aching from my workout at the gym yesterday morning. I barely slept at all, and I felt awful when I got up with Jackson this morning! Thankfully, we had a sitter day today since Ali (my sitter) is going out of town tomorrow, and we never do Thursday with her usually!

After I dropped Jackson off, I watched an hour of TV and fell asleep. I was up and working on my paper by noon, but I was still feeling sick. All I’ve eaten today is 1/3 banana, some hash browns and cheese (literally took me an hour to finish the bowl), and a protein shake (with Ripple- I couldn’t stand the thought of regular milk, but I like Ripple in my protein anyway). I got Jackson at 4 and fed him dinner immediately and then I literally laid on his floor with him until he went to bed at 7. Mom of the year. How do moms survive when they’re sick?! EVERY time I was sick so far, we lived with my mom and dad and my mom totally took over. This is my first time not feeling well and being alone. And had I been actually throwing up or something… Well, I probably would have had Jon fly home early from his regional meeting, since they were SUP boarding and hanging out at the beach today (tough meeting).

Jackson has been super fussy lately too. I think he may be teething. But I’m trying to avoid Motrin unless we really need it, and I don’t think we’ve needed it these last few days. He’s consolable and gets distracted. He just happens to have a LOT of meltdowns.

I weighed myself yesterday morning and I’m still right at 100ish lbs. My trainer mentioned adding a few more pounds, but I realized that aside from this belly, I’m happy with how I look. I wouldn’t mind adding some more muscle at all, but I had to go up a size in shorts and I’m feeling much thicker these days. So, if I hang out at this weight, I’m totally fine with it. I do need to eventually start doing more ab work (I have added a little in) and clean up what I’m eating some more. Less unhealthy carbs for sure. Maybe even cut out the Ghirardelli chocolates. Maybe not, though. Gotta live a little.

This may not be exciting for everybody, but for the first time in my entire 12 year long college career, I made a run chart! It literally took about an hour and I had to consult Google a LOT, but I did it. I’m really getting ready to be a masters prepared nurse, haha. I really am going to be in for a rude awakening when I get to my internship, I think. I’ve done well in my program, but I haven’t invested a ton of time into reading, which I have a feeling is pretty normal. Most of these people work full time and with the assignments, there isn’t time to sit and read everything. I’m getting kind of nervous though because I know I’ll have a whole capstone project to do and I get really shy doing things in front of people, so having to do this entire thing makes me nervous. And having to shadow and realize how much I don’t even know also makes me nervous. I don’t like feeling dumb! But our manager now has only been in her role for about 2 years, so I have a feeling she probably had a lot to learn when she got into the job, too. She went to NP school, so I HOPE it works out well.

Anyway, I’m going to go try to eat a little something else and then hang out on the couch for awhile. I’m really hoping I feel better tomorrow since I’ll have Jackson all day and really want to finish up my paper, so I need a productive nap time. And I want to make it to the gym in the morning.

Long time no write! I don’t have much to say. My sister came in town the other week so I took a hiatus from school and hung out with her. My parents also came in town the first weekend that she got here and it was so nice to have my family in town! I don’t see Annie (my sister) that much and she had never been to Charleston, so it was just a lot of fun to have her in town. We relaxed a lot but we did get out and do some exploring. We walked the Ravenel Bridge (a big bridge here) and it was WAY easier than expected. I think I’m going to try to do it more often. I love the late evening and sadly, never get to get out much at that time of the day, so it was so nice getting out two nights in a row and seeing the city at my favorite time of the day. I wish she could have stayed longer! I’m thinking of road tripping to Wisconsin with Jackson this summer to visit her though.

I spent a weekend in Atlanta and saw the Braves home opener at the new SunTrust Park with Jon, Andrew, and Andrew’s girlfriend, Liz. I got in a workout at my old CrossFit gym, which of course, I loved. I miss that gym, even though I don’t know any of the members anymore. I’m excited to go back to CrossFit in September, although I’m thinking of just doing the 10 class punch card and stretching it out over 2 months while I just use LA Fitness the rest of the time. My schedule will probably be all over the place and I can’t just have my mom watch Jackson every night while I work out. So… who knows how that’ll go.

I’ve been struggling a bit with Jon working SUCH long hours lately. He gets home just before Jackson goes to bed at 7 and then typically pulls out his computer after Jackson is asleep to work more. I think part of the problem is just that I’M not that busy anymore. I hate that he works such long hours and I feel like I’m just sitting here all the time. I am really liking Charleston and I love the break from working, but I feel like my own life is just on hold. Also, I logged in to pay bills and I have a feeling I won’t be going out of the country again this summer, haha. We’re doing fine with money, but definitely not saving like we should be (we have paid a LOT of the Tahoe off, though… and went to Poland… And I have paid for a lot of Iceland)! I know if I was working, it’d be different, but I’m not going to be working much for awhile. That was a good reality check. But I feel like I’m not focusing on much else, so I just want to travel. I need to remind myself (and start to actually believe it) that this is just a phase and I will be immersed on my own work eventually. One year until I’m done with my masters and then we can either really invest in our life in Charleston or go somewhere else.

Speaking of, 11 days of school left! I have a paper to finish (I was just working on it) and a movie to watch and some assignment to do. I need to motivate myself to get this done! I have a lot left on my paper, but I sort of don’t care. This professor grades easily and I’m through the first three paragraphs, which is what I had to research for. Now it’s just creating a plan for improvement. Got it. The hard part for me is figuring out how to format this portion of the paper in a way that makes sense and flows in APA format.

Anyway, not much to say. I’ll be off to do more schoolwork. Can’t wait to just go to the beach on my first day of having a sitter in May! This break from school can’t come fast enough! Especially since I FINALLY checked my email and have been working on getting all of my internship documents together, which is a pain. I have to resubmit and redo a lot of physical testing (vaccinations, TB test, health assessment, etc).

Alrighty, have a great week, everybody.

Hey-o. So, I got a butt picture for you all.

If I’m remembering correctly, these photos are five weeks apart. I was sitting around 96.5-97.5lbs on a regular basis in the first photo, and now I’m usually 99-100lbs. I didn’t take photos of my arms or anything (though I think I do actually have some), but this is my butt/leg progress! I’d say it’s pretty good! Please ignore my face- I clearly don’t take mirror selfies very often and it takes a lot of concentration, I guess. I actually pulled out my post-baby shorts that I bought when I was heavier and they are much more comfortable than my usual shorts, so I know I’m makin’ them booty gainz. Kidding. I don’t actually talk like that. But guys, I’m actually really proud of this butt. I have been averaging 3-4 trips to the gym a week, but I took this photo this morning and had taken 5 days off from the gym. So, not like I’m going all the time, either. I’m just so glad that my pants are fitting better and I FEEL much better. I like feeling strong, and I’ve been feeling much stronger again. I’m actually not lifting anywhere even close to my heaviest, but I’m fine with that. I’m really working to target my muscles, even if the weights are a bit lighter than I used to do. I’m actually really going to miss my personal trainer when our time is over and have considered continuing with him until September. But I don’t want to get too “thick” right now because I can’t maintain that without a lot of work, and I want to get to a size where I can stay at without putting in a ton of effort.

Next up- that Mom belly.

We’re having a rough day around these parts. Jackson is napping (I really hope he sleeps the afternoon away!). He woke up a miserable boy. He had shots last Friday and he was totally fine afterwards. Yesterday I noticed a red spot on his thigh. Today it’s a pretty good sized nodule and the redness is much more pronounced and about quarter sized. I’d normally not be worried, but it was completely fine until yesterday. And he was a serious fuss-pants today. I gave him Motrin first thing this morning and it got him well enough that I took him to the gym with me. I only spent 40 minutes working out and then dropped in to check on him before I stretched and the poor kid was melting down. So I stretched with him in my lap the best that I could and then we came home. He has a runny nose too and Jon and I have had pretty bad colds, so I can’t tell if he’s been fussy from that or if his thigh hurts. And his butt is bleeding, since I think he pooped in his sleep last night, so he has been screaming when I clean his little bum. So, poor kid has a tough life. He felt warm yesterday and feels warm again today, so who knows what’s up. I hope he’s well enough to go to Ali’s tomorrow because I HAVE TO CLEAN! I haven’t cleaned my bathrooms in over a month (but really, our toilets here don’t even get dirty- how is that possible?) and need to since we have company coming on Saturday.

So I should be cleaning now. Or finishing up my project. But instead I was too excited about my butt and needed to share my progress.

Iceland is BOOKED! Woohoo! Everything is done and now we just need to do some researching into where we’re going. I’ve actually been looking at medical mission trips again and am seriously considering Cambodia. Our friends are moving to South Korea (Adam and Jessie), so I’m thinking of seeing if Jessie can meet me in Cambodia for a few days after the mission trip. I’m really feeling a pull to give more of myself to those in need, and the trip in Cambodia sounds awesome. You boat into different villages every day for medical clinics. It’s right under $3,000 and I would buy my own flight, but I think we can swing that next year. I really want to try and do a mission trip every year. I’m reading The Little Princes, and I had been wanting to go to Nepal lately, and now this just has be wanting to go give back in other countries. And once I’m out of school, I’m hoping to start volunteering at medical clinics in the US, also. Wherever we live. There is one in Atlanta that I could do, and I can look into ones in Charleston, also. (Like, actually 9-5 type clinics- not the free clinic I already volunteered at in Atlanta.)

It is super nice out today. I wish Jackson was a little happier so we could soak in this day. I was going to meet Lisa and Nora for a playdate at the museum, but that’s not happening! It would have been a great day to go walk around. The temps have dropped with the huge storms that came in yesterday and I’m loving it! I also wanted to do one of the Hike It Baby hikes this morning, but again, we weren’t having that today.

I’m going to go work on my project a bit more. Just kidding. Jackson just woke up…

Hey guys! I’m not feeling very motivated to write in here, but I’m even less motivated to do schoolwork. I’m having a super moody/bitchy morning (Jon always forgets to leave the stroller at home and I’m in the process of finding a good baby carrier for extremely petite women, so he messed up my plans this morning- and he knew he had the stroller with him but didn’t warn me so I got to the garage with a baby and 10,000 things and found out that he still had it- WHY NOT TELL ME AHEAD OF TIME?!). Really I’ve been kind of bitchy all week. Last Sunday, Jon asked me if I was getting my period because I was so moody, and then I did get it. But now I have no excuse I guess.

Anyway, so, I’m two months into this stay-at-home-mom business, so I thought I’d write about my perspective on being a SAHM vs a working mom. Keep in mind, I have ONE kid. So this is from my perspective as a mom to ONE child. I imagine that as you have more kids, everything gets way more complicated and this post would be totally inaccurate. Also, I worked part-time and am doing my masters, and I don’t have a typical 9-5 job.

I tell Jon all the time that I have no idea what SAHMs are bitching about. I unfollowed all my mom boards on Facebook because I feel like I have this mom thing figured out now and was tired of reading so many mom posts. But in the year I spent reading way too many mom posts, I saw a LOT of SAHMs defend their roles. They go on about how they cook and clean and they “work” too. If you have more than one kid, I can’t even begin to imagine what it’d be like with two kids at home. But one kid is way manageable.

I’m not sure what SAHMs think WMs do. Maybe they think we have cooks and maids (okay, a lot of WMs do have maids) and people to go to Target for us and that we all get our groceries delivered. (Please note, I obviously know that most SAHMs probably don’t actually feel this way, but the few posts I see that imply that really irritate me.) But I didn’t have any of that. So on top of working, I still had to do everything that SAHMs did. And let’s be real, Jon was pretty useless at home tasks, so that all fell on me. I even had it pretty cushy- I ran errands a lot of times on the days that Jackson was in daycare so I could get stuff done faster, but had I been working every day, that would have happened on weekends or in the evenings (and it still did a lot of time, because my days off were spent on school). Even working 24-32 hours a week and spending roughly 6 hours a week on schoolwork, I was BUSY. I was stressed. I felt like I was always behind. I spent 11 months with my boobs being sucked like a cow during lunch at work (dropping food all over my scrubs and pump parts) so I could make food for my kid.

Being a SAHM? Guys, my house is spotless pretty much. I clean up after Jackson nonstop because I have time. My laundry gets done regularly. I run my dishwasher every night and unload the dishes every morning. I drink my coffee in silence during nap time (if your kid isn’t napping regularly and you refuse to lead your child in their schedule, let’s not bitch about how you never get peace and quiet, because you could totally have somewhat of a regular schedule if you tried to). I even take naps occasionally if I want to. I watch my hour of TV of a day during nap time. I clean the bathrooms during nap time if I need to (usually over 2 or 3 nap times). I have tons of time to spend with my son. I eat lunch with him. I eat snacks all day long if I want. (You know, since I’ve seen lots of people say they just want to get an hour for lunch like working moms do! Not that I’ve EVER had an hour of lunch since being a working adult.)

I even like my husband more (except for this week- I kind of can’t stand him this week, but this week isn’t the norm). I am less irritable because when he leaves his shit all over the house, I HAVE TIME to clean it up! I’m not busting my ass at work and doing everything in the morning to get myself AND my kid out of the house so I can clock in on time. I’m not eating a snack at work before going to daycare to get my kid because I know I won’t be eating right away when I get home. I don’t feel frazzled from being on the go nonstop when Jon walks in the door like I did when I was working. Jon and I spend time together in the evenings after Jackson goes to bed usually (I do sometimes still have to cook after Jackson goes to bed and I usually clean up the entire floor at the end of each day, but it doesn’t take long), because I had all dang day to get everything else done. Our marriage is the best it has ever been since we’ve been in Charleston and I haven’t been working. I appreciate Jon 1,000x more when he’s gone 11 hours a day working hard to make money for our family, while I am having easy days at home.

I can see the frustration of SAHMs not feeling like their “job” is being validated. But really, this isn’t a job. This is parenting. Yeah, it’s parenting 24/7. And maybe I feel this way because my husband isn’t a dickhead about me staying at home and he is grateful for what I do for him (I hear about how some men treat their SAH wives and it’s ridiculous). Maybe I feel different because I know this is temporary. I know I’m going back to a crazy (single-mom) life in September while I work and finish my masters in Georgia, so I can really soak in this time staying at home. I do miss working. I do miss adult interaction, but I set up play dates so that I can still have that. I try to get out and see friends when I go back to Georgia too. Jon is good about being supportive of “letting” me out whenever I need it. I also REALLY encouraged a schedule, and our days look similar every day. We do different activities through the time Jackson is awake, but he naps at the same times every day. I started that from day one because of my sanity! My kid doesn’t wake up all night long because I didn’t let him. And trust me, I do have really frustrating days. I was irritated with Jackson today and then he threw all of his oranges on he ground at the museum.

When I had been working, I thought maybe I was missing something about being a SAHM. I really thought I must not understand because I had never been in those shoes (except for when I had a newborn and that was brutal!). But I wasn’t. At least not for us. I can’t imagine dragging a second kid everywhere with me, but like I said, this is a perspective from a mom of ONE kid. I think being a SAHM has made me even more irritated when I hear SAHMs talking about how hard it is to be a SAHM. Go to work and then come home and have the same amount of work to do at home, plus find time to spend with your little person, and THEN see how you feel…

And here’s the thing- if it IS hard emotionally to be a SAHM, I totally get that. I get how this is redundant. I get that sometimes you feel kind of useless (or I do). I get that adult interaction could be lacking. I get that sometimes, you’ve had it UP TO HERE with your dang kid. I get that. I also get that when your kid is crying all the time as a newborn, that is totally different. Those newborn days can be excruciating and I hated every single minute of maternity leave and couldn’t wait to get back to work. But once your kid turns into a real little person and not just a crying sack of potatoes, I think we’ve had time to figure life out. So, SAHM, please, stop tallying up your duties at home and calling it a job. I’ve been sweeping my floors since before I had kids and it was never considered a job. I was doing my husband’s laundry before and it wasn’t a job then and it isn’t now.

I wouldn’t change working for a minute. I LIKE my career. I work because I WANT to (I still technically work- but only 32 hours a month). I think part-time is the best of both worlds because I get more time at home with my kid, but I also get to be somebody other than just mom (that’s important to me). I like bringing in my own paycheck and feeling like I’m contributing. I am worried that I’ll go back to thinking Jon is annoying when I go back to work, and when we have another kid and I keep working, I worry about that too. There are plenty of days I miss working and when I was working, there were plenty of days where I wished I had more time at home.

For these few short months, I’m going to continue enjoying the ease of being a SAHM. I’m going to soak up my quiet cups of coffee, my trips to Publix with Jackson squealing in his truck cart, days at the beach with my boy, and a super clean house. I’m going to revel in my days that all look the same and having time to play with my kid nonstop.

(Also, this is totally not to say SAHMs are less valuable than working moms. I don’t think that AT ALL. I think we all have different lives and we all want different things out of life. I’ve never thought, “Oh, you’re JUST a SAHM?” More power to moms who stay at home! More power to working moms! We should ALL find what makes us the happiest. And maybe some people did work before and feel like being a SAHM IS harder, and I’d actually love to read a comparison from a mom who thinks that (with one kid) so I could see their perspective. But I guess this is just to say that I don’t think daily tasks around the house should mean that being a SAHM is a job. It’s a role. Being a working mom is a role. Being a nurse is my job. And personally, being a SAHM for ME has been WAY easier than life ever was when I was working!)