Never Enough Time

I've been asked many times by various folks, "so what do you do in a day?" As if being a mother isn't a full-time job in itself. It is a question that I could take great offense to, but usually just laugh it off. You see, it is mainly my elderly Italian father-in-law that asks me this question. It is probably just his way of trying to start conversation. But sometimes I think he actually means it. Chauvinism still runs strong in the family and I tend to believe he thinks I'm a pampered princess watching TV and reading magazines all day. As any mom knows this is about as far from reality as you can imagine. Being a stay-at-home mother is full-time work in multi-tasking. Our role encompasses every avenue of employment you can think of (i.e. childcare provider, nurse, chef, waitress, concierge, taxi driver, personal assistant, laundress, housekeeper, accountant, dog walker, constant companion and best friend just to name a few). And we don't get paid a dime for it either. There is never enough time to finish all the things you want to accomplish in a day. Yes, there are many trivialities to it all (i.e. grocery shopping, cleaning up the house, walking the dogs, running errands for the family etc.) which I wouldn't want to bore anyone with. I mean come on, how exciting is it to write about cleaning up Dixie's muddy paw prints once again streaking across the kitchen floor after her walk? No, this does not make for exciting reading. But yes, it is part of my life as a stay-at-home mom. My days are usually packed full, running from one thing to the next. If I was asked what I did in a day, it may not sound glamorous and exciting but it certainly takes more than the bulk of my time and is what helps make the hub of my family run smoothly. And I wouldn't change it for anything in the world.