There were a few months in between my departure from the full-time job I had before having my baby that I'd gone back to after maternity leave, and my when I started working again in a new field, and during those months I was hardcore, full-time, stay-at-home momming. And I'm not gonna lie, most of the time it was glorious. If they're anything like I was, the things stay-at-home moms think about are mostly related to how much they really like what they're doing, despite all stereotypes about being bored, resentful, and drunk all the time. I felt like I was living the dream as a stay-at-home mom. I’d rock my baby to sleep with gentle dance moves, appreciating the afternoon sun that came in through the kitchen. How had I never noticed it before? How had I never noticed how effing beautiful my town was? How quaint and homey our neighborhood was? How gentle and cuddly my son was when his dad and I weren’t stressfully handing him off in between meetings? How crisp and fragrant the autumn air was? Everything was amazing and there was nothing wrong with the world.
And then...reality hit. A couple weeks into my SAHM career, I caught the mother of all colds, and it knocked me on my ass. I barely had energy to blow my nose, let alone tend to my six-month-old. All of a sudden, I understood what other moms meant when they talked of being in the trenches. And even after I got better, it grew clearer and clearer that being a stay-at-home mom isn’t all sunshine and snuggles. Allow me to share the full spectrum of what went through my mind on those early days at home: