I quit my job.
After I graduated from college I worked part time at a daycare. Five days a week. Only about 6 hours a day, but it was still a leave-the-house-at-an-appointed-time job. It also brought in some money. $10 an hour to be exact. That means I made somewhere between $40-$60 a day. Not a lot…but almost every single penny of that went to paying off my student loans.
But then those two pink lines appeared on that pregnancy test, and without any second thoughts, Theo and I knew I would be quitting my job and staying home with the baby. Even though it means taking a hit to our finances, we decided it was the best thing to do.
So I quit.
There were two reasons behind that-
1) It is a hit to our finances for me to stay home, but it would be even more expensive for me to keep my job and then pay for daycare. It just didn’t make sense for me to go to work (and take care of kids), but then pay someone even more than I made to watch my kid.
2) I want to be the one raising Tera. Not that I think no one else could do a good job. Not that I think I am the only one that can teach her things, but I want to be the one raising her. I have always wanted to be a Mom; and let me tell you- it is a FULL-TIME job.
Being a stay-at-home Mom is a job. It is totally different from any job out there. It does not have set hours. In fact, it is never ending. I do not get paid a penny. Yeah, yeah…I get paid in seeing my child grow up to become loving, giving, hard-working blah blah blah. That is all great, but I don’t get PAID anything. As in…money in my bank account. Nope. None of that.
The hardest part of being a stay-at-home Mom is how incredibly mundane and lonely it can get. Feed the baby. Change the baby’s diaper. Do the laundry. Entertain the baby. Feed the pets. Change the baby’s diaper. Sweep the floors. Feed the baby. Yell at the dog. Feed the baby. Burp the baby. Change the baby. Do the laundry. Feed the baby. Wash the dishes. Make dinner. Feed the baby. Change the baby. Entertain the baby. Sweep the floors. Vacuum. Check social media just to know if any other adult is actually alive out there in the world. Put the baby in the carseat and drive somewhere, anywhere- just to get out of the house. But don’t forget to throw in a load of laundry before leaving! And to feed the baby. And, never mind….feeding, burping, changing her and putting the laundry in SOMEHOW took two hours and now it’s too late to go anywhere. Day over. Go to bed.
Wake up. Repeat.
There is never a promotion (although there are different life stages; some easier than others). There is never a pay raise, a new office, a new co-worker or a fresh group of students. It’s the same thing- day in and day out.
I’ve been reading Oswald Chambers “My Utmost for His Highest”. This morning I read this:
We do not need the grace of God to stand crises, human nature and pride are sufficient, we can face the strain magnificently; but it does require the supernatural grace of God to live twenty-four hours in every day as a saint, to go through drudgery as a disciple, to live an ordinary, unobserved, ignored existence as a disciple of Jesus. It is inbred in us that we have to do exceptional things for God; but we have not. We have to be exceptional in the ordinary things, to be holy in the mean streets, among mean people, and this is not learned in five minutes
Wow, that was exactly what I needed to hear. That pretty much exactly sums up the reason I named this blog “The Glorious Mundane”. God doesn’t ask us to do GREAT things for the kingdom, to become famous, to become world gospel-spreaders, to have hundreds or thousands or even millions of people say “well done for the kingdom!” Instead, it’s living the life God has called me to with excellence. It’s doing the dishes and the laundry and changing the diapers to the best of my ability. It’s serving my husband and my baby as if they were millions of people patting me on the back, saying “well done”. It’s taking Theo’s words and encouragements and letting them be enough, not craving the affirmation of many, many more voices.
Now, you must be thinking that I hate this job. I don’t. I actually love it. I get to see Tera wake up in the morning. I get to feed her all throughout the day. I get to keep my house clean and my husband fed. I get to wash, fold and put away the laundry, which is truly a gift from God (many people in the world don’t have a single change of clothes!). I get to spend my days at home, and I am in charge of our schedules. I get to work at home to the best of my ability- even if it is not easy. Even if I don’t get any fame or glory. Even if the only people that say, “good job” are my Mom and my husband.
And, of course, God. He has called me to this job right here and right now. He is equipping me to do the dishes, to wash the laundry and to feed the baby- even if that seems like something ANYBODY could do. I am doing it, and I will do it to the best of my ability.
This blog post originally started as a “how I organize my time as a stay at home Mom”, but it turned into me writing my heart out about being a stay at home Mom. Some days it is discouraging. Some days it is THE. BEST. JOB. EVER. It’s not about comparing my job to other people’s jobs, or even comparing my successes to theirs! It’s not about toting the idea that God calls ALL wives and mothers to be stay at home Moms (because I actually don’t think that is true). It’s just me writing about where I am now, and how I feel about it. And sorry for the lack of pictures! Maybe next time!