I became a “working mom” when my firstborn was 9-months-old because we needed the extra income. I continued working through my second pregnancy and for another three years. In May 2018, we were 3 months away from our oldest starting kindergarten, our childcare bills were almost my entire salary and we didn’t know how we would get our son to and from school. We took a long hard look at our finances and made the decision for me to stay home.
It has been both the most treasured and hardest time of my life.
Five years later, I am just 8 months away from graduating college with my Bachelor’s Degree and planning to be a working-out-of-the-house mom again in the next school year. That means I have only a few more months of that SAHM life.
Today, as I was cleaning out my daughter’s room while she was at school, I started thinking about how I wouldn’t have the time to do things like this anymore. There will be no more quiet days cleaning the house or sneaking off to have lunch with the moms. It will have to be weekends or holidays when we are all home together to get the chores done. I’ll be more tired by the end of the day and will have to be even more present in the hours after school and before bed with our family.
I’m more emotional than I anticipated. I have been working towards this goal for almost three years now, I knew it was coming. I have wished and dreamed of this day. But did I do enough in the five years I was home?
Did I take it for granted?
Did I appreciate all the small moments I had with my kids when they were little?
Will I be good at going back to work?
What if we spent all this money on college and I stink at everything?
It feels like I am standing on the edge of a cliff. I can see a new season of life on the other side, but I still have a few months left on the bridge being built. So I am just standing here staring at it, both wishing I could stay and cross at the same time.
As I stand here I realize I am in a unique place. I have the opportunity to prepare and make sure that myself and my family are ready for this change. As a family, we can prepare ourselves both mentally and practically. I am currently making a list…..
This is my list so far:
- I won’t be a Mom Who Mows anymore, will we outsource that chore?
- Downsize all over the house to minimize messes and clutter.
- Deep cleaning, is it worth it to outsource this monthly?
- Reevaluate screen time for all of us. (Are we making the most of time together?)
- Budget for more weekend getaways for us as a family, and for my husband and me.
- Do we have a savings plan for this new income source?
- Get a system going for laundry and other chores.
- Get a digital family calendar going to make coordination easier.
