Why I Work

The boys enjoying a popsicle.....Please ignore my naked Ian. Potty training...remember!

There is so much division in the world of Motherhood. The breastfeeding moms look down on the moms who give their children formula. The cloth diapering moms despise the moms who use disposable diapers. The moms who home school loathe moms who send their kids away to school and vice versa. The stay-at-home moms are appalled at the working moms. I mean really…..shouldn’t we all be in this together? Our common goal is to raise our kids to be God-fearing, productive members of society and even though our methods differ, our goal is still the same.

The argument that I of course take personally is the misconception about moms who choose to work outside the home. I work for many different reasons. I guess the number one reason is to provide for my family financially. Sure, we could do a drastic downgrade in our lifestyle in order to make it on one salary, but I want to give my children opportunities that I did not have growing up.

Another reason why I choose to clock in is because honestly, I enjoy my job. I think that being a nurse is truly a calling and I can’t imagine working in any other profession (Okay, maybe an actress would be nice or how ‘bout a singer or maybe even a professional athlete or supermodel) I didn’t choose nursing because I couldn’t get into medical school or because all my friends were doing it, I have honestly always wanted to be a nurse. I learn so much from the families I take care of and I like having a title other than ‘mom’. I will also admit that I think I have been blessed with a pretty cool working situation. I am at home with my boys during the week and I only work weekends. During that time, daddy clocks in so my boys are pretty much always with their parents (except during the times when they are in mother’s day out). There was a time after Ian was 6 months old when I seriously contemplated staying at home because our childcare situation was dismal at best. I cried crocodile tears whenever I dropped my boys off and decided to trust my instincts and take them out of that particular ‘institution’. I believe in my heart of hearts that we are still battling with the trauma he endured at this facility even though he was only there for a month.

I guess the point I’m trying to make is that moms choose either to stay at home or work outside the home for many different reasons. I like to assume that all good mommies have their children’s best interests at heart whether or not we choose to work or stay at home. So instead of judging one another and creating division, we should band together and lift each other up. Cuz raising kids is the hardest job any of us will ever have!