Stay At Home Mom

Stay-at-Home (SAHM) Series: Intro

Can I be real? I use to think very lowly of the stay at home mom occupation. For whatever reason, I thought the role was an easy out from being a “working mom”. Not sure if I am the only one but I thought that the SAHM had all the time in the world to do yoga, grocery shopping, child rearing, cooking, cleaning, remain a decent friend and companion. Sadly I admit, I was an idiot.

Being a stay at home mom isn’t for the faint of heart. In my own experience of transitioning from a “working mom” I had to face a unique set of losses, restructure the expectations as wife, mother, daughter, and friend, and also create what seemed to be a new life for myself. In this three-part series, I will share honestly about my own journey and what has helped me navigate this part of the motherhood journey. I also hope to share some resources for those of you who are new to the stay at home mommying crew.

Becoming a SAHM was not on my radar when I first became a mom. I have always enjoyed my work and was looking forward to mommying and remaining active in therapy. Life had other plans, when my son turned 1 I was abruptly faced with decisions that led to me staying at home. I will share in more detail in another post. For now, I wanted to pose a few questions for you if you are in the crossroads of becoming a SAHM:

What is necessary for this stage of life?

Are you willing to change your lifestyle? If yes, what aspects are willing to let go of and what are non-negotiables?

What do you WANT to do?

What does it mean to you to be a stay at home mom?

Do you personally know any stay at home moms?

The resource I found most helpful was groups on facebook. There are local groups for everything, cloth diapering, breastfeeding, stay at home moms, babywearing, etc. Find like-minded groups to get connected and feel free to explore the page content to help you decide what’s best for you. You can find many groups that are welcoming and judgment-free. Cheers to you moms who have been killing the SAHM game! Please share any resources that have been most helpful in emotionally supporting you.

* I used “” when referring to working moms because the truth is being a SAHM is a TON of work. The term working mom is meant to refer to the mom that works outside of the home on a part-time or full-time basis. But let's be real, all moms who are actively engaged with their family are working!

Peace and Love