Stay-Home Mom?

So, I've been thinking today about the phrase stay-home mom. I'm not sure what that means exaclty. It's something that in parts of todays society is looked down on and in other parts is very respected. I've frequently heard "just a mom" be the descriptor of a mom who is not going to a job outside of her home on a daily basis. For those of you who are moms you know that "just a" doesn't even begin to cover what you do.

What has really struck me lately though is this. I'm around a lot of "stay-home moms" in my life. At church, in MOMS club, and even in some of the business arenas in my life. What I'm finding to be the truth is that none of them actually stay home. A rather large majority of them do in fact work in some fashion. Many have home-based businesses (like me), and many work part-time (like me), and many spend lots of their time working for service organizations or organizing activities for their church or civic group. I honestly don't know a single stay-home mom who stays home.

So how does the mom of today define herself? I was recently asked in some paperwork if I considered myself to be part of the workforce. I said no. When people ask me if I work, I usually answer "I've got three kids at home. or I'm home with the kids." The truth is, however, that I collect a paycheck every month. It's not much, but it pays for most of the kids clothes and most of my clothes, and those little things like mulch, and flowers, and the Women of Faith conference I'm going to in March. It helps when a car breaks and when Easy and I want to do more than just eat dinner on date night. But, I'm not a working mom by most standards. I'm also not a stay-home mom.

I think instead I'm a mom actively seeking to improve my children's life. If that means putting in some hours so they can have a birthday party or some new shoes when they need it, so be it. If that means saying "no, I can't help with that" because I know it would take too much time from my kids, so be it. If that means putting together activities at church so that I can be around other parents and have my kids around other Godly families, so be it. Whatever it takes to improve my kids' life and teach them the values and character of Christ - so be it.

So, to all of you out there finding your own way to be a mom I say keep up the good work. I'll pray for you today that you are listening for and hearing His voice as He directs your path. I've learned that the path isn't always what we are most comfotable with, but His path always end in a better place than I would've gotten to on my own. So I guess what I've concluded is this - I'm not just a mom, or a working mom, or a stay-home mom, or a domestic engineer..................I'm a Seeking Mom. I hope you are too.