As a stay at home wife/mother with a toddler and a new born it would stand to reason that I have no time and possibly no desire to start a blog. However, with all decisions I make I try to look at the ultimate rather than the immediate. The ultimate goal of this blog is to never take away from my family - they always come first - but rather to document, for lack of better word, the trials and joys of being a stay at home wife/mother. It is also a way to connect with other women of faith, share what the Lord is doing in our home, and reflect on where we have come from and where we are going!
The majority of posts, at least within the remainder of this year, will likely center around the transition our family is approaching. Only once before did I experience the blessing of being a SAHWM and while it was short lived it was amazing! After the birth of our second son, DA, I worked from home and was able to do so for 18 months until I returned to work over a year ago. Six months in my new job, what I thought would be my 'career', I found out I was pregnant and six months into the pregnancy I was put on bedrest for the remainder of the pregnancy. A week into the bedrest I was laid off from my job. As with most upsets I am able to look back and see that His word is true - 'All things work together for the good of those who love him'! It is our hope and goal that I will be able to remain as a SAHWM. Perhaps the largest factor affecting this plan is my husbands upcoming graduation from school and his ability to land a job in his industry. I am praying and fasting for him daily - for devine connections and appointments and that the Lord would shine upon him with favor!
I never claim to be a perfect wife or mother but simply a wife and mother who has a heart for her family and home and to fulfill my highest calling - because I was created for this.
Shannon, this is great! I can't wait to read more :)
ReplyDeleteReading over this reminds me of when i was just starting out on my stay at home journey (although I have usually held down some little part time job). I am not sure if you are saying, SAHWM - Stay At Home Working Mom because you are working at a job for pay from home or if you mean that being at home taking care of your home and family IS a job but either reason is a good enough one for me! I find that taking care of my home and children and helping out with any of the typical issues from within my close family requires way more coordination, time management, self control, mediation skills and PRAYER than any other job I have ever been paid for. I am so fried by 5pm every night yet I still struggle with setting boundaries in my life. After working all my life to earn a degree (to go to work), it has continued to be a tough transition to shift over to a job where there are no opportunities for advancement and no one there critiquing me to let me know (for sure) whether I am really doing a good job or not and the hours are just absolutely grueling. I think, for this reason, I tend to push myself to do more and more of any and everything to prove to (some unknown audience) that my work is valid and commendable. I would like to advise all the women out there by saying, "Just because your time is somewhat flexible, it does not mean that you are required to fill all of it up with other people's needs, wants, desires and emergencies or even self-imposed projects. You had goals when you started your new "job at home" and those goals require your time. Try to stay focused on your goals and take your work seriously like any other paid job because it is a real job. Honestly, if you were not doing it, you would be paying someone to do it for you. If, God forbid, you dropped dead, your husband would have to pay (on average) over $100,000 a year for all of the duties you perform as a SAHWM. (I heard this recently on a radio program though I can't remember what it was.) It is okay.... No. It is necessary to set priorities and to say "no" to worthy causes in order to keep your priorities in order at home. Trust me when I say that it is so easy to wander away from the path you intended to blaze. If you are not careful, you will realize that you are giving all your time and passion something other than your family." I am not saying that you should close the door, lock it and devote 100% percent of your time to baking cupcakes and reading stories but having good balance as a SAHWM is a lot harder than most people realize.
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