Stay at Home Moms Just Don't Get it...

My wife is a stay at home mom. My good friend Mike Smith is a stay at home dad. I converse with these two people on a daily basis, probably more than I do with anyone else besides maybe my Dad. It's safe to say that I've heard my share of "venting" on how "difficult" their "JOB" of being a stay at home parent is. Needless to say, this is a very difficult subject for me to broach because of these relationships. While I love them both dearly and I never mind listening to them vent, I just don't think they get it.

Job (noun): 1. A paid position of regular employment.

As for me, I wake up every morning before the sun rises and I drive 45 minutes to work. I get into a work truck, drive to a neighborhood and run in a race against the clock to finish my work allotment before I run out of time. All the while I'm being threatened by customers, chased by dogs and at the mercy of mother nature (Who is also a stay at home mom, coincidentally). When I'm finished I get back in my car and take the 45 minute drive home in rush hour traffic. I do this every day 8 a.m to 5 p.m (plus drive time) Monday through Friday. Every two weeks I get paid for my work and my family uses that money to pay the bills, eat and buy a few things we might need. I've done this job for 15 years.

What exactly does a stay at home mom do?

• Rolls out of bed and takes a nice peaceful shower 
• Makes a delicious breakfast to eat while catching up on some television shows
• Enjoys a nice warm and peaceful cup of coffee on the back porch
• Feeds the kids a Pop Tart
• Scrolls through her Facebook news feed for a few hours commenting on a picture of a cute Pinterest idea and a status of another stay at home mom complaining about how her toe nail painting got interrupted by her toddler who knocked over her nail polish and how frustrated she is now that there is a big ugly stain on the  new  plush carpet she just paid for with money her husband made at his job.
• Calls a friend and talks on the phone for an hour
• Feeds the kids a sandwich
• Does some online clothes shopping
• Calls the kids over to pose with her for a picture with her new selfie stick.
• Sits the kids down in front of the television until daddy gets home from work.
• Sends a few texts to her bestie about how she doesn't feel like cooking dinner

Does that sound like a job to you? Would you "vent" about the "job" you had to perform every day if this was your daily routine? I don't think so. Some people just need a reality check. These people need to count their blessings and be grateful for what they have and the people who make it possible.

Don't you agree? I'm sure you all do and I look forward to reading your comments. There won't be any debating this one. It's pretty cut and dry. Thanks for reading and have a great day.

Oh, wait...

 Check your calendar before you start calling me a chauvinist and berating me for my jingoistic comments waging war against the stay at home parent.

Ah, yes, 'tis April Fools day. Well, it was when I wrote this anyway... I may be a child but I'm not a chauvinist. Allow me to offer you a second definition.

Job (noun): 2. a task or piece of work.

 Is there a more important piece of work one can be called to pour her blood, sweat and tears into? This leads me back to a question I asked earlier.


What does a stay at home parent really do?

• Wakes up on command
• Feeds on command
• Struggles to make time to actually brush her own teeth and take a shower.
• Changes ungodly diapers at all hours of the day
• Cleans up mess after mess after toy after puke after coloring on the wall (you get the point)
• Plans three meals a day
• Pays bills
• Handles Doctor visits
• Shapes and molds tiny humans into well mannered and respectful children
• Shops for groceries
• Disciplines
• Manages melt downs (for both child and self)
• Forgets to feed herself lunch.
• Remembers to feed herself lunch but the baby needs her so it'll have to wait.
• Runs all of life's little annoying errands that come up at inopportune times.

etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. 

Do I really need to list anything else? Because I can, but I'd like to wrap this thing up and get some sleep tonight so I can be well rested for my job in the morning where I really just drive around in a work truck listening to sports talk radio and get some exercise running through sub divisions while occasionally dealing with an upset customer or an angry gang of chihuahua's who, for some reason, view me as a threat in their sub divisional turf war.

I guess it just depends on your perspective. I could choose to describe my job the way I did at the beginning of this blog post or I could choose to describe it the way I did just now. I prefer the latter. However, no one should choose to describe the job of a stay at home parent, whether a mom or a dad, the way I did at the beginning of this blog post because it's the most important job on earth. The list of responsibilities is endless and thankless. To top it all off, Daddy (or the working parent) gets to barge through the door when he gets off work and be welcomed home like he spent all day saving the world when Mommy is the one who truly deserves that super hero's welcome. After all, she was protecting our world all day while Daddy was At work.

 Some people just need a reality check. These people need to count their blessings and be grateful for what they have and the people who make it possible...  it's usually us working parents. I know my boss is a lot more understanding than a couple of tiny tyrant toddlers.

Stay at home parents just don't get it...they don't get the respect and appreciation they deserve for the job they do. The next time you feel like taking a break and catching up on Grey's Anatomy, go right ahead. You deserve it.

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