Gratitude

Being a stay at home mom is a full time job, and if you have a week or two in a row where you fail to have positive social interactions with people outside of your household it can begin to feel like the most thankless job in the world.

There is nothing like spending some time with a kid-friendly friend.  Whenever I have a friend over (who likes children) and we get to talking while watching my son play, the work of being a stay at home mom feels less like a job or chore and more like a joy (The way I wish it would feel all the time).

I think what it comes down to is gratitude and a shift of focus.  When you feel like the thing you do all day every day is being taken for granted (by who ever it is who's opinion is plaguing your mind) it becomes hard to remember to be grateful for the child in the story.  My friend and I were talking about complications in delivery that family members (her and mine) had experienced; and an abbreviated recollection of the birth of my son.  And I looked at my healthy baby playing right before our eyes and felt a warm wave of gratitude fill me.  Through all the pain and uncertainty we had made it.   

I love my son, and though being a continuous caregiver can be exhausting it's nothing beyond my capabilities.  And it's one of those things that's hard to fully convey to people who don't have kids; but I'll try anyway:  being a stay at home mom is harder than it seems, and all the bad things people say about being a parent are true times ten,  but the the good bits people talk about are true a thousand times over.  Parenthood is a journey, and being there to watch your child learn play and grow is profoundly amazing.

So when times are hard, look back and remember the struggle, remember all that was challenging and dangerous and reflect on how far you and your child have come.