Another school year has come and gone. This year was filled with big transitions for our family as my youngest began kindergarten, and I returned to the full-time working world. I was given the absolute pleasure of staying home with my boys for the last eight years. I was available to attend to all their needs and grateful to care for them each day in sickness and in health. It was not all glorious, but it truly was a treat and time I will treasure forever.
As I have become a working mom, there have been new challenges and new joys. I have come to a newfound and greater respect for all working moms who navigate the daily to-do list while leaving the home for many hours of the day. I recognized that this would be a great challenge, but didn’t recognize to what extent I would feel like I was juggling so much. I have come to see that each activity and experience the kids are involved in requires a weighing of sacrifice and time. There’s the constant questioning of worth as our time seems to now come at a premium.
While our extracurricular obligations ramp up, along with my work life, I have become more and more grateful for the time I was gifted when my kids were younger. While I recognize that a one-working-parent family is neither an option nor preference for some, I am grateful that it was for me.
Now that I have navigated a year of working, I have a clearer head and a stronger understanding of what it means to be a full-time working mom. I am grateful that when my babies were little life was slower. We took it all in and navigated each day together. We enjoyed slower weekends and early dinners and bedtimes.
Now that I work, I see the absolute joy in this lifestyle, as well. I love having a place for just me. A place where I go and meet my own friends and have my own purpose aside from “mom.” I enjoy contributing financially to my family and the feeling of self-worth I have found in stepping outside the home and having my own job.
I can wholeheartedly say I cannot draw a line in the sand on whether it is better to be a working parent or stay-at-home parent. We are all so different and by preference or neccesity we may choose one or the other. What I can say, at the end of the day, is that i am grateful for the opportunity to have been able to do both. I am grateful for the perspective it has brought to myself and my husband. While the sacrifice of my staying home may have meant a difference in our lifestyle it also meant a lot of time with my kids that I thoroughly enjoyed.
Whichever you are choosing for your family, I hope it is what is best for you. It is hard enough to be a mom and juggle all that comes with that role. I hope you are able to do it in whatever fashion helps you to feel empowered as your best self.
