Stay At Home Mom

I don't really think of myself as a SAHM or Stay At Home Mom.  I think of myself more as a WAHM or Work At Home Mom.  But to be a WAHM, you probably should be bringing in some kind of financial contribution to the household and as of right now I'm not doing that.  So SAHM it is.

When people outside of my family or circle of close friends find out that I'm a SAHM, they probably think that I sit on my rump and eat bonbons all day.  That is sooooo far from the truth.

Here's what I do (not all in one day mind you):
-Take my husband to work.  He has keratoconus (more on that in a later post) and doesn't see well enough to drive anymore.  We also only have one vehicle, so it makes sense for me to have the main form of transportation in case of emergencies.
-Feed 2.0
-Change 2.0
-Housework.  This includes washing dishes (a seemingly endless pursuit) by hand as I do not have a dishwasher that works, gathering laundry (to be washed on my husband's day off so I don't have to take the baby to the laundromat anymore), running the vacuum, taking out the trash, cooking, picking up toys (over and over and over again), and anything else that has to be done around the house.
-Run errands.  This means going to the library, getting groceries, paying bills, going to doctor's appointments or any other appointments that I have scheduled at any given time, and anything else that requires leaving the house and driving somewhere.  Now when I say getting groceries, I mean running to three or more grocery stores to save money on food.  We shop around a LOT.
-Work in physical fitness somewhere in my day.  I'm trying to walk a mile every day and do sit ups during the day.  2.0 thinks it's a really strange game of peekaboo.
-Take care of Coco, the dog.  As I no longer trust a groomer to take care of her, that means I shave her and bathe her and cut her nails and clean her ears.  I also take her outside to do her business, feed and water her.
-Play with 2.0.  This takes up a good chunk of my time.  2.0 is gradually becoming more and more mobile, which means that the amount of time he can be left to his own devices has become smaller and smaller.  So we play with all his toys to wear him out, practice walking around the room, chase after Coco.  We also read books and play games.
-Put 2.0 down for his nap twice a day.
-Maybe, if there's time between everything else, while 2.0 naps I start writing.  More often than not, I'm planning meals, downloading recipes, or putting something together for church.
-On Saturdays, I drive down to the church and spend about a half hour or so setting up my classroom for Sunday school.  I teach second and third grade and I love to have fun things for the kids to do.  That means during the week I'm putting together crafts or lesson props that I can make at home.  Otherwise I raid the 'craft closet' at church and put it together Saturday night.
-Starting the first Tuesday of March I will be attending a Bible study with other women.
-Wednesday nights I have accountability group with three other Godly women for two hours.  2.0 attends with me and gets to play with another little boy named Nate who is 6 months older than him.
-Eventually I do pick my husband up from work.

I know it doesn't seem like a lot.  But trust me, it's enough.

I don't get sick days (as I've learned from recent experience.  However I did have help that day), I don't get paid in anything other than my son's laughter and smiles, and I don't get a day off.  I'm on call 24/7 and I don't get much sleep anymore.  But this job is the best one I've ever had in my entire life.