Poll: Think Stay-At-Home Parents Have It Easy?
One writer goes viral with a minute-by-minute account of a day home with little ones.
A San Francisco mother’s account of her typical day as a stay at home mom is making the rounds on the Internet and triggering controversy over whether full-time mothers have it “easy.”
It’s a question mothers in Maryland—the majority whom work outside of the home—may have contemplated at one time or another.
Nearly 80 percent of children under the age of 12 in 2011 in Maryland had mothers in the workforce, according to a report by the Maryland Family Network, which advocates for children and families.
In 2010, nearly 71 percent of mothers with children under the age of 18 nationally were in the work force, according to U.S. Department of Labor statistics.
Writer Amy Keyishian’s nearly 2,000-word narrative of one day of her life as a mother of a not-yet-1-year-old and a 2-year-old contains details of the real, actual physical work it takes to be a parent: wrestling with a Diaper Genie, the cleaning up of toddler "accidents," grocery shopping, playdates and the “stink eye” from other adults watching a mother juggling children with other tasks.
The article, with more than 400 comments on the Yahoo Shine site where it was published, has working and stay-at-home moms alike weighing in.
One commenter with three kids said the article sounded "A little whiny to me ... I had time to watch tv, talk on the phone, visit with people etc. ... Being a mom isn't easy but if you can't do it than don't. I don't understand why women today require so much praise and accolades for doing what women have always done.”
Another praised the writer for sharing her experience as a woman at home with young children.
“We are the last ones to bed and the first ones up, last to eat (if we get to have a full meal) and the work never ends,” wrote one commenter. “I would love to go to the bathroom alone or bathe alone. I love my kids and I am proud to say I am a hard working mother and I am grateful for this little story.”
Weigh in on our poll or below: Do stay-at-home moms have it easy?
H.R. Pufnstuf
12:41 pm on Thursday, April 5, 2012
As more women have flooded the workforce, the increase in labor has driven down wages. So, in the 50s women in the workforce was all about "choice". Now if both parents don't have a job the family goes bankrupt. But of those lucky enough to be SAHMs, I seriously doubt they have half the skill of a 1950s SAHM. Which one could make clothes and which one can't sew a button? Which one can quickly prepare a meal vs. dialing for pizza? And furthermore, staying at home with kids is not a full time job. There's plenty of time for SAHMs to pursue hobbies. I wish they'd quit with the whining.
Nonlinear
2:27 pm on Friday, April 6, 2012
I quote Bill Burr - " any job you can do in your pajamas, ain't that hard".
" oh - bending over at the waist to put children's DVD s in....it's too much"
Nonlinear
2:30 pm on Friday, April 6, 2012
But I wouldn't do it.