a mother's work

"A man's work is from sun to sun, but a mother's work is never done." ~Author Unknown

I am not sure if there is a statement that I have personally found to be more true than this. An eight hour work day is non-existent in the world of motherhood. You are at the very least "on-call" twenty-four hours a day. Shoot, my most productive hours have sometimes been after midnight.

I wouldn't say that my job as a mother is more difficult than my husband's job as a financial provider for our family. I don't think the two can fairly be compared--it is one of those apples to oranges comparisons. They are both roles which serve our family, and both have its advantages and disadvantages, but that is basically where the similarity ends. I can't adequately comment on the perks and drawbacks of Paul's role as provider (he will have to do that), but from my perspective, here are the positives and negatives of my role as a stay-at-home mom:

1. My tasks are revolving. I finish one task (say, cleaning the kitchen), then move on to the next (say, the laundry), and when the laundry is finished, the kitchen needs to be cleaned all over again.
2. I live at my office. I can't leave my "work" behind and forget about it until the next day. It is always there, staring me in the face, taunting me with the phrase, "I'm waiting...". I have found a potential remedy to this, though. It's called CLOSING THE DOOR! Now, even though I may close the door to the laundry room, for example, I may still faintly hear the call of the laundry. But one of the abilities I have gained as a mother is the ability to tune things out. This is a time when that ability comes in handy.
3. I usually don't have to leave the house first thing in the morning if I don't want to, unless it is my week to drive carpool. (I do like to get out of the house, however, and it is never as simple as just going to get in the car and driving to my destination. No, no. It requires fully dressing more than myself, filling a diaper bag with diapers, wipes, sippy cups, and snacks, and packing a stroller.)
4. I don't have anyone other than God and my husband to answer to.
5. My work is not rewarded monetarily. I still have the same allotment each week for our household expenses whether I am underproducing (getting behind on laundry) or doing more than my share (cleaning out the entire garage all by myself).
6. My husband and children do try to compliment my hard work, but they are the only ones who might notice that I scrubbed the toilet, and they--being males--usually don't. Let's face it--some days it feels like a thankless job no matter how grateful my family may be.
7. I get to be at home with my children, which means I have the privilege of spending the most time with them.
8. While Paul's headaches are usually nasty people or the planning board at the Town of Cary, my headaches are generally caused by a lack of sleep and the intense volume of children talking and laughing in the backseat on the way home from school.
9. If one of the boys is sick or scared in the middle of the night, they want no one but Mom to comfort them.

The truth is that being a working man and a stay-at-home-mom both have their joys and their hardships. I will say that I never had a job that is as tiring as being a mother. And never, ever, ever have I had a job that brought me more fulfillment, more joy, more happiness, and more tears. I wouldn't trade jobs with Paul anyday, and he says he'd never trade with me. We're thankful for where God has placed us. I love Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 which says, "I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil--this is the gift of God." To be happy in your role--not that it is always fun or easy but to know that you are fulfilling one of your purposes in life--what more can you ask for? Ok, maybe I could ask for a maid....

So maybe a mother's work is never done, but I think that when my children are grown, I'm gonna miss the heck out of it. I'll miss having a little boy standing over me in the middle of the night, waiting for me to let him crawl into bed. I'll miss cooking dinner for three hungry boys. I'll miss washing their laundry and holding that tiny sweater next to my cheek and marveling at how quickly my baby is growing. I'll miss driving them to school, practices, and games because that is the time when they seem to want to talk with you most. I'll miss dusting because it gives me the chance to admire their treasures in their rooms. I'll miss homework (believe it or not) because it provides a moment to see my son learn new things. And I'll miss making a bed where there is an imprint where my growing child's body was sleeping.

Now that I think about it, thank God my work as a mother is never done. I wouldn't have it any other way.