Why I Love Being A Stay At Home Mum

I’ll be the first to admit that some days I don’t want to be a stay at home Mum, It’s definitely not the easy ride that a lot of people perceive it to be and nothing grinds my gears more than when stay at home mums are talked about in a derogatory way. There are days when I would love to swan off to work in the morning, wear smart clothes, drink hot coffee and talk to adults and then come home to my beautiful daughter who has been worn out all day by somebody else. Ninety percent of the time though, I absolutely love being a stay at home Mum and these are some of the reasons why.

I don’t miss out on anything
I’m the first person to see her firsts. I have witnessed her first smile and laugh, her first funny faces as she tries new foods, her first wobbly attempt at crawling and very soon I’m sure I’ll be there for her first proper steps. We might not get paid to be stay at home Mums but these rewards are better than any paycheck.

I’m the boss
Most of the time… Darcie does basically rule the roost but it is me that gets to decide what we do, where we go, who we see, what we’re having for dinner. I make the rules and going back to my previous point, I’m the first to see her break them! I love being in control of my time and having the autonomy to decide how our days are spent, rather than going to work and somebody else telling me how I should spend and manage my time.

Raising a child is the ultimate project
I love a project. Having something to work on, that I’m fully responsible for and can commit all my time and effort too. If that’s not a good description of raising a child then I don’t know what is. I love raising Darcie, I love teaching her things, showing her the world and watching her take it all in with those big blue eyes. She’s a delight to be around and there really is no better use of my time.

I can wear what I want
Two years ago I would have seen that as the perfect excuse to put effort into my outfit, to style my hair everyday and to actually experiment with make up and try new looks. But these days I’m happy that it means I can wear my Mom jeans and a baggy tee if I want to. There is no dress code, nobody to impress. Some days I love making an effort with my appearance but I love that I don’t have to do it, especially on days when I’ve had little sleep and there is a Velcro baby demanding all of my attention.

I don’t have to commute
I spent three years commuting to work on public transport and boy am I glad to see the back of South West Trains. Of course I sometimes wish that I could be a train ride away from the kitchen that has been Weetabix-ed or the lounge that has been Darcie-ed, but I really am glad that I don’t have to commute anymore.

My baby doesn’t judge me
If there is one person in the world who isn’t going to judge you when you crack open the wine at 3pm or dive into your second packet of biscuits, it’s your baby. I can pour myself a lunchtime Spritzer and she doesn’t even bat an eyelid, I’m not advocating day time drinking ‘on the job’ but I’m just saying the option is there…

I’ve got full monopoly of the playlist
I’ve worked in an office where we didn’t listen to music and I’ve worked in places where we have fought over what radio station or CD to put on. These days so long as Darcie can bop along to whatever I’m listening to, she couldn’t care less if it’s Taylor Swift or Eminem. She does have a preference for 80’s hip hop but she’s quite happy for Mummy to be the DJ.

Pinterest projects
I love being crafty, thrifty and all sorts of other adjectives that could be used to describe a stereotypical stay at home mum. I love finding things for us to do, Pinterest always has good ones but I get ideas from chatting to other Mums or from things I’ve seen on TV too. As she gets older this is only going to get better, as there will be even more things she is able to join in with. I expect that every day will be Father’s Day for Dan as he’ll come home to a different craft project everyday! Bring on the macaroni necklaces and the potato prints!

We get to do things ‘off peak’
This is nothing to do with ‘off peak’ in the saving money sense, this is ‘off peak’ in the ‘Wow other peoples kids are so annoying and it’s so nice when there are less of them around’ kind of thing. Going swimming on a Tuesday afternoon is so much more appealing than going swimming on a Saturday morning. I wouldn’t even want to go near a soft play on a weekend but its actually nearly enjoyable on a Monday. We do still brave family attractions on the weekends so that Dan can join in, but it’s so nice being able to do these things at quieter times too.

I get to hang out with my best pal
I was never going to make it through the list without a soppy one. Darcie really is a great little buddy to hang out with all day. She has her moments, but she’s a baby so she’s allowed! I get to savour every second of her childhood, I get to be the one to comfort her when she needs it, we laugh everyday, I get to show her new things, read to her, take her out for lunch and do so many other wonderful things together that I would never be able to list them all.

I hope you enjoyed my list of reasons why being a stay at home mum is the best job in the world. If you are having a hard day, I hope it can be a reminder to you of the better days, the ones that make it all worth it. What are your favourite things about being a stay at home mum?

Taken from my blog: www.ohlovelydaysblog.wordpress.com