working mom
I Love My Kids, But Being A Mother Is Not Enough For Me
I read a recent post titled Being a Mother Really Is Enough. I love this blogger’s sentiment because I can totally understand what it feels like not to be satisfied in your own situation, in your own skin. I’m still working on being happy with myself no matter what I do or how I do it. I’m not very good at it. But I’m also not happy being a full-time mom, and there’s nothing wrong with that.
The original blogger encourages mothers everywhere by saying:
I am a mother.
And I am enough.
And so are you.
I am enough when I choose to sit in quiet and drink my coffee instead of preparing breakfast.
I am enough when I leave the clothes in the washer well beyond the essential 24-hour period.
I am enough when I let their outgrown clothes pile up like a mountain out of neglect and, perhaps, out of resistance to the idea that those clothes no longer fit my babies.
To be honest, I am a little bit jealous about the security with which she appears to write. I wish that I could feel great about myself doing absolutely nothing, but I often use work to validate myself. I wish that I could cut myself some slack and not worry about chores, but I’m constantly grading myself in my head and hoping that I live up to my own personal expectations at the end of the day. I’m sure that’s exactly what this blogger is talking about, and I embrace what she’s saying.
I tried to be a part-time stay-at-home mom when my first son was born, and I hated it. The thing was, I felt restless and anxious in my own skin, and I didn’t know what to do with my baby all day long. I actually googled: What do you do with a baby all day?
It wasn’t until I started working again and decided that I wanted to work full-time from home that I felt better and somewhat balanced. Yes, life is still incredibly stressful and hectic with an entire family under one roof while working at home, but for me, just being a mother wasn’t enough. And that’s okay.
I agree with what this blogger is saying. I believe each and every person should feel valuable for who they are at their core, period. Like I said, I believe this, but I’m still a work in progress. I also believe that I personally could not find fulfillment as a full-time stay-at-home mom, and that’s okay too. I love to work because it fulfills me. I choose to work because I don’t enjoy caring for my kids all day long, and that is enough.
(Image:Â Piotr Marcinski/Shutterstock)