My sweet little Alli is quite opinionated (as I suspect is true of most 4 year olds!) and has life figured out.
Here was our recent conversation (to preface, I've been working tons of hours lately):
Alli: Mommy, when I grow up, even if I have to work, I'm not going.
Mommy: Well sweetie, it doesn't really work that way.
Alli: Well, when I'm a Mommy, I'm never going to work because I'm going to stay home all the time with my kids.
Mommy: I hope you get to do that if it is what you want.
Alli: I will!
Mommy: You will have very lucky little ones.
Alli: Mommy, I wish you never worked.
Mommy: Me too!
Growing up, and even in my 20s, I never thought of myself as a stay at home mommy but boy does that little girl know how to make me feel like I should! Funny thing is, I know many, many moms who have jobs outside the home, but Alli doesn't. Every.Single.One of her friends has a Mommy who is home full time so she cannot understand why her Mommy works. How do you explain that to a 4 year old???
By the way, I'm writing this at the airport . . . yet another aspect that she doesn't understand.
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Ahhh...talk about putting the guilt on mommy! Although she may not realize it now, she will look up to you as a role model for being a working mommy who was able to balance home and work life.
ReplyDeleteYou worked SO hard to get where you are and she will (one day) be so proud of her mommy and all of your accomplishments. Because of your wonderful example, she will see that women can do both...and do it well. I bet she is a working mommy one day, too...and you can remind her of this conversation! :-)
That being said, she will enjoy having you home come September...and I know you will cherish the time with all three kiddos without any interruptions!
I am sorry I cannot offer any other words...I am one of those home mommies who secretly (many times) wishes I was at work! Ha!
Oh boy - she can pour it on huh..... guilt is a tough one and she certainly knows how to push the guilt button (look out when she hits 14 - ha ha!). Seroiusly, I don't know that there are any right answers.... we just do the best we can with the choices we make and we love our kids to the moon and back. That is really it. You are a great Mommy whether you work or not. It is what you do with the time that you spend with your kiddos that truly matters and let's face it, people always want what they don't have and because you work she gets to spend time with Miss Kaitlin and that is pretty cool too! There is always a rainbow in every dark cloud if we look hard enough!
ReplyDeleteLove you!
Michelle