Reply to SAHM's, What do you do all day?

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[quote=Anonymous]I'm a SAHM with a 9th grader, a 1st grader, a preschooler (who is out for the summer) and a 12 month old.  I am a college graduate but guess I would now call myself a glorified Family Administrator, not sure what else to call it.  Think of it as an Office Administrator or maybe a Human Resources Director.  There is always something that needs to be done, fixed, taken somewhere.  My husband works from his home office and while it's nice to have him here it actually creates more work for me.

My 9th grader is athletic and always has something going on with sports.  His activities take up most of my time.  Even with the three other children I spend a great deal of time dealing with the 9th grader.  Older does not necessarily equate to not in need of maintenance.  I actually had planned on staying home once my oldest went into high school.  DH and I both volunteer at sports events (announcer, chain gang, organizing drinks, etc.).  DH also coaches one of my son's teams.

1st grader has play dates out the wahzoo, I am her personal driver.  I volunteer my time to her school's office (2 hours a week during school), bring items home to type/create/proof, and assist her teacher with special projects (mostly tasks I can do at home).  I plan on being very involved with the schools that my children attend.

Preschooler attends class three half days a week, but school is out for the summer.  I coop at the preschool once month and help to organize a yearly fall fair. It's all going along on errands and playing in the yard for the preschooler.  I put more energy into my older children's activities than I do into Little Gym or Toddler Music (both of which I think are super cool!).  I think, for our family, the younger children receive enough stimulation from the older children.

We have to make a decision as to where I want to invest my time, who needs it the most.  I want to prepare the older kids for life, and let the little ones learn as we go until they are a little older.  My 9th grader is showing leadership qualities and being nominated to various groups at school.  It's very important to us that he is able to pursue the opportunities being offered to him as he is off to college in three years.

And the baby, he just hangs out.  He is super laid back, very smart and cool with anything we do with him.

I shop (duh) for clothes, groceries, school supplies, birthday gifts.  I plan parties and bbqs (for instance, a huge gathering for Father's Day).  I run dry cleaning around (don't we all?), drop off items to the post office, call in repair services when needed, schedule doctors appointments, laundry (for six people is ridiculous when you factor in sheets/towels/sports stuff), I watch sales for good deals, I garden and grow some vegetables, I meal plan/cook for everyone, I read before bed, I make sure the cars are running/oil changed, I plan weekend stuff when we have free time, Ugh, there is so much more I do.  I am always running.

Doctor's appointments alone, I swear, take up a ridiculous amount of time.  One child has allergies, one has skin issues, and one has the dreaded well baby check up what feels like every 2 months.  I have migraines as well so I am at the doctor quite often.

While I don't have a nanny I do have a college student come in twice a week for three hours (6 hours total).  While she is here I try to schedule dr appts so I either don't have to drag all the kids or I can get out with the kid who needs to see the dr.  I also use her time to get into the garden, get a little organized, change sheets, anything else that I need to be away from the little ones.

I don't think SAHM's with school age children necessarily sit at home doing nothing, or spend all day getting manis and pedis, I mean they certainly can but I think unless they are afforded the lifestyle that allows them to do so there is cleaning, cooking, basic home maintenance, and plenty of other things that get done in a well oiled home (all of which sound super boring and dull now that I re-read this).

At night before bed, once the kids are put away in their rooms (a nice time of night), the dishwasher is loaded, lunches are made and my wine glass is full, I try to sit down and read.  Evening is also when I exercise.  Or watch my guilty pleasure shows/blogs (RHNJ, Nurse Jackie, DCUM). Or snuggle up with DH, talk about the kids and what a great job we are doing  with them!

I cannot remember when I actually accomplished all of the above when I worked in an office (way back in 2000), and I did 100% feel like staying home was a vacation.  I totally get what OP is asking, but please rest assured OP, we are busy busy busy people!

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