Teatopia

It IS lots of work. I couldn't do it. I found it easier to not quit my day job. I was fortunate to go parttime but I still have trouble finding time to do stuff like read (you should see the stack of books/magazines/newspaper on the side of my bed). So nice of your mama to offer. It is heaven sent.

I hear ya! People have NO IDEA what it's like. Even the bubby who was a relatively easy baby was still 24/7! I called it 'Baby Radar' I said to my husband time for myself with him looking after the bubby isn't really time off. The only time I feel like I have time off is if I go to the movies. It's because when the hubby is looking after the bub, and i'm home, I still pass him the bottle, put out the nappies - basically assist the hubby in doing EVERYTHING and he still thinks he's totally has done everything (HAH WHATEVER) for the bub. Whereas if I'm really strong with myself, leave the bub with 'dad' and go out to a movie, it's the only way I can switch off. I get engrossed in the movie and I feel like i've been on holiday when I come out. The problem is that I can only do this once a week, on a Saturday when the hubby is home from golf - incidently he doesn't even think about the bub when he's on the golf course (no Baby Radar see! And they wonder why it's SO tiring for us) because he knows that I'm in total control.

I totally understand. It is a hard FULL time job, without the recognition it deserves.

Wow on your decision to be SAHM. It will be one you will never regret. Congratulations, mommma. :)

Motherhood (done right) is a full-time job. And it sounds as if you have a very caring support group. That's so nice.

I was a stay at home mom for my two sons, and loved it.
Cas

For those of you who don't understand or do not have children (and I can say this because I don't have children just "furbabies"). The women who choose to stay home to raise their babies, do not have to explain their reseasons for doing so. It's really none of anyone's business to why they do so, and if they need "me" time then BY GOD they deserve it.

It makes me upset to read that some people don't "understand" or "disagree" with you when you state that you need "me" time (you didn't say "me" time, but I know that is what you mean). This to me means that they are selfish people, who have no right to open their mouths and speak (my opinion only). We all need "me" time, and goodness knows that we all have mothers, and goodness they need that desperate "me" time.

Honey if you don't take some time out for yourself and enjoy what you used to enjoy before your precious little one arrived, then you will loose the sense of who you were before you became a mom. I'm not a pyschologist(hehe obviously since i can't spell it right), but I think that is when depression sets in.

I think highly of the mothers who stay home with their children, who put their careers on hold, to be a mom. Most women these days do not do that, they are so career orientated, that some how their children are lost in the shuffle, or forgotten, or become latch key kids. I say if you are capable of doing this SAHM, then do it!! I do realize that some women do not have the opportunity to do so, but I also know that most women are still in their childrens lives, and know what they are doing and where they are going.

I pat you on the back Hannah, and I give all my love and hugs to you and your family.

The whole point of this long comment (sorry for it) is this...Remember you do not have to explain to others for the reasons you do things...You do what you know is best for you and your family, and that is all they need to know. If they don't understand or don't agree with it, that is their problem, not yours.

I don't have children, as I stated this in the beginning, and I can see every reasons for your thoughts about this. I can see someone wanting to do things they once loved, and that is not a bad or awful thing to want. We are all human and we need to keep up with our hobbies, and we all need some help with things at one time or another. It's not like you are putting her into daycare, just so you can go do things you want...which i've seen (and this i don't agree with, don't put kids in daycare just so you can go play...my mom had a daycare, so I seen this first hand), you just want a couple of hours to have quiet time, and this is A GOOD THING TO
WANT....

And for those of you who think that this SAHM, is not a tough or real job, then God Bless you when you one day have children. Raising children is the toughest job any woman will face in their lifetime!!! I appreciate all MOMS and DADS for what they have to go through in their lives, and even when a child turns 18, they still don't stop worry about that child, their job really never ends until they Meet our Father In Heaven, and still I think they worry, lol. God Bless you to all the parents out there, you have a tough but also rewarding job! I can't wait until that day (far far far into the future) to be a receipant of that job, and I would gladly grasp ahold of that job, and treasure for the rest of my life!

BRAVO on your decision. it truely is a hard one to make, but being a full-time SAHM is an experience you will never regret. I cannot imagine anyone else experiencing the everyday things that I get to witness, from Sophia. Imagine picking up your child from a caregiver to hear she smiled for the first time. Or she said her first words. Or any first. These are moments that I have waited my whole life to experience & would never give them to anyone else.
In time, you'll find a rhythm that you slip in to, where you have You time. Now that Sophia is two, she's beginning to alread y pull away & as much as it kills me, I know this is how it goes. So I cherish every moment. Whether good, bad, ugly, or indifferent. These are my Mommy moments.
My Hub once told someone who was expectin their fist child that "You can have your best day & worst day, the same day. And those moments could be 15 minutes apart. But it makes you stronger & love your child more."
Your feelings are perfectly normal & understandable. I commend you for saying them. Sometimes a Mom can feel like if she even hints at not being 100% content as a Mommy, she'll be looked down upon, and I hate that. We are still humans, and flooded with emotions. Something about birthing a child, made me a more emotional person, but not in a bad sense. A little softer. And I've never regretted that. Nor giving up work. Being a SAHM is an amazing gift from God.

In the past weeks that I've been home with my little one, I have definitely gained even more respect than I already had for the SAHM. As someone who previously didn't really think twice about going back to work after having her child and now kind of wishes she could stay home at least part-time, I think it is awesome that you are able to be a SAHM and be with Olivia. But I completely agree that you should have time to yourself as well because it is a full-time all-consuming job whether the rest of the world wants to admit it or not, and it is definitely necessary to take a break every now and then (just like you would with any other job). Congrats again! :)

I relate.
For me, the time to read has returned, in spades - it's what I do while MrMan nurses. We lie down, he eats, I read.

Congrats on your new job title :)

Congratulations on your new job title, Hannah! Motherhood is definitely *hard* work but *so* incredibly rewarding, as you know. I feel blessed, as well, to be a SAHM ~ it was something that I *really* wanted to do for our child[ren] someday, because it meant a *lot* to me that my mom was always there for me. Glad your mom is coming over so that you can get some "me time." Maybe you can find some career-related things that you can do from home, kind of like my freelance reporting job [once Olivia gets older].

Congrats on being able to be a SAHM -- even if you have trepidation about it. I would like to be able to do the same. I work part time so I do have some SAH benefits I just find it stressful to attempt to juggle a job, family obligations and trying to have a little of my own life. It spreads me a little thin.

I agree people without children do think that SAHM sit on the couch all day eating bonbons and watching tv while their children do nothing but nap all day. That's so not the case.

My best advice is take it one day at a time and you will find you niche.

Oh girl,
Can I just tell you that I once had a girlfriend comment to me that maybe I didn't understand how hectic things got in her workplace(!!!)

I thinl she was just jealous, but needless to say..THAT friendship ended a while ago. It's not as easy as she had it dreamed up in her mind,. I wish it was!!

I think you just signed up for one of the most rewarding jobs :) but also definitely the toughest. I truly admire stay-at-home moms because my own mother gave up her own life for her kids and for that i am truly grateful. One day your little girl will be grateful you stayed home with her - if only for a few years.