"Just' a Stay at Home Mom

Hey all! Kailly here. Just going to jump right into todays post!

The other day, I was at the grocery store. Lines were crazy, so I patiently waited. Daddy had N, so I was just chatting with the gentleman in front of me. He asked where I worked. I showed him a picture of my princess and said I stayed home with her, and I was blessed with a husband that busted his butt at work for us. He smiled big and said she was beautiful. But then he said to me, and I will never forget it, "Oh, you're just a stay at home mom?" Just a stay at home mom? Like all he thinks I do is lie around in my plush bath robe, flipping through gossip magazines, watching "Guiding Light." Oh, and don't forget that I do all that while eating bon bons.

Sir, let me welcome you into the reality of being just a stay at home mom.

Most days start at the butt crack of dawn, since N decides it is time to play. There are no birds chirping, and there isn't a beautiful sun glaring through the windows. It's still dark out. Not, dusk dark, or early morning sun peeking out dark, nope, just dark. This happens at least once a week. I've tried to explain to her, that if the sun is still sleeping, that we should be too. She hasn't really gotten that part yet, but it's okay. These are honestly some of the best times with her!

Some days as I change N's diaper, she smashes her heels into it before I can catch her. She is a wiggle worm to the "T". Of course, this never happens with a pee diaper, it's always those poo ones. So, poo flies through the air, smashing me in the face. Usually, I remember to wipe it off, if she hasn't tried to yet crawl off the couch. My daughter is an adventure seeker. She loves the feeling of falling. Toss my princess in the air and you will hear her giggle for miles. It is adorable. She also has pee'd on me before. How is that possible with a girl? I never thought it was. N was lying on the couch, I had already pulled a diaper off, and was getting the next one ready. As you can probably tell, this was when I was new at being a mommy. This doesn't happen anymore! :-) Any way, she decided to toot, and pee came with it, and with how strong her little toot was, pee went everywhere. My shirt was wet, my arms were dripping and my face was covered. I wipe my face quickly, and if I am lucky I get a chance to change my shirt.

Afterwards, we have breakfast. I eat with N as she sits in her high chair. Our table is right by the patio sliding glass door, her chair right next to it. I've learned to pull the curtains back so she can see outside. Usually, our dog, Lylla is lying right outside the door. N loves to watch her puppy. And, if she can't see outside, she won't eat. It took me a while to figure that one out! So, we eat breakfast as she watches her puppy. Some days, N loves to smack the spoon as I try to fly it into her mouth. Pears hit the wall, and N kicks her feet with delight. I laugh as I clean the walls, and whatever other objects may have been in the line of fire. N is going to be excellent at starting food fights one day.

By now, Mr. grocery store man, can you tell things aren't what you think they are? You see sir, it is now about 10 am. Only 10 am you think? Yep, only 10 am. There is already a load of laundry in the washer. One, that I usually remember to get into the dryer, and eventually fold. That laundry is from the blow outs of yesterday, from the few bibs from her meals, and from my clothing that is dirty from our adventures. N is likely going down for her morning nap. From here, I have to pump, and then I hurry to make lunch, since I likely didn't get to eat my breakfast. Now, here sir, is where you may have something right. I do sneak in some mommy time. I watch, my guilty pleasure, "The Price is Right" as I finally get around to folding laundry. But, I'm not in a plush bath robe. I'm likely wearing dirty pajamas, my hair is a mess, and the only reading material in sight is a stack of childrens books, most of them being Mickey Mouse, my daughters favorite character!

If I am lucky, I will flip the video monitor on and rush upstairs to take a shower and get into real clothing! I pop the monitor on the counter, and hop into the shower before it is the right temperature in case she wakes up. I pop my head out once or twice to make sure my sleeping beauty is doing okay. My shower will last about 5 minutes, and then I am out. I quickly get dressed, toss on some moisturizer, or makeup if I have time, and run back downstairs.

Once N is awake, we will play like crazy. We laugh together as we play with her alligator music toy. We chase balls that fly out of her Mr. Elefun toy, and we flip through books, reading stories and making funny voices. After playing more, feeding time, diaper changes and packing a bag, we load up into the stroller and walk down to the park. It isn't too far away which is awesome. We stroll the park a few times before she gets fussy and starts talking. I know what she wants to do, so I park the stroller, pull her out and we head over to the swings. She squeals with delight as I push her back and forth for the 50th time! Then, I climb up the huge playground equipment, with her in hand, wishing they had stairs and we go down the huge slide. Each time, she is so happy, and kicks her feet, her hands go up in the air, and we dance through the park. N weighs 20 pounds, so by this time, I am running out of breath, thinking I may need to work out more or something!

Once home, we do baths, change clothes, and I pump again for the fourth time of the day! We play more, and on more than one occasion, I find myself laughing until my sides hurt. We crawl across the floor together, and sometimes I scoop my crying princess into my arms after shes rolled into the metal bars of her bouncer. I kiss her boo boos, and give her a toy to distract her all the while bouncing her up and down on my leg singing a horsey song. Once she cheers up, we are back on the floor playing, crawling, rolling, scooting, whatever she wants. We also have music time, signing time, and other time to stimulate her! After another feeding, she falls back to sleep. This is usually right before Daddy gets home. I put her down as I run rampant, trying to clean up all the messes from our day. I try to get the laundry put away, give the dog some attention, and clean up all of our toys that are scattered all over the place. Once I am finished, I may turn on reruns of Americas Next Top Model while I finish getting dinner prepped or whatever else needs to be done. Then Daddy gets home. He helps a ton while he is home, which is great.

Mr. grocery store man, I love what I do. I have the best daughter I can imagine. But, can you tell it isn't just relaxing and eating twinkies all day? Have you ever wondered why you pay so much for daycare for your kids? Do you think that is because your provider hangs out all day doing nothing? I saw that somewhere and it made me laugh with how true it is.

Sir, I am my daughters provider, teacher, doctor. I am her personal stylist, hair dresser, manicurist, masseuse. I am her chef, bath giver, boo boo kisser. I do everything for my little girl, and I love every single minute of it! She is my life, and I am hers! I am her mommy, and she knows it. There is no better feeling than that! So next time you tell someone they are just a stay at home mom, please remember this! And, if you'd like, I'll give you my address so you can see, in person, what every day entails! It is the most fun, awesome, rewarding thing in this world. And, it's also the hardest job I've ever had!