STAY AT HOME MOMS...Do you have this problem?

Question

I am happily married with 2 kids..6 & 8 years.
We are financially able for me to stay home.
BUT
I work from home making xtra money by sewing boutique clothing...sometimes 30 hrs. week..sometimes just 5 hrs...
I keep the house clean (okay okay.."picked up" )
Cook dinner each night, make hubbys lunch & breakfast each day.
Kids have dr.s appointments (dear daughter meets with therapists 2 times a week for some behavior & neurological disorders)..plus reg. appts.
cub scouts. PTA. Church missions group. Sunday school.
Of course then there is all other weekly stuff like groceries...laundry..homework & playing with the kids.
Oh..and i help take care & cook for my 77 year old grandma...
I'm exhausted!

BUT...it never fails~Someone asks me (Usually a female, once they've asked me where I work..and I say home..) at least ONCE a week... "DON'T YOU GET BORED?".

HOW on earth do you tactifullly handle this question...cuz i think i am about to start getting mean!

CRYSTAL S...that's EXACTLY what I am talking about!

I never expected responses like this...Thank you...a few minutes of your time, lifted MY spirits more than I can express.
Thank you.

Answer 1

I'm also a stay at home mom, but my children are 7 months and 4 years old. So they're both here all day while I'm trying to do the cleaning and errands. And that is probably the most common question I get, don't you get bored? I always tell them that I would love to have time to be bored. I'm much too busy to be bored, and half the time too busy to shower, lol, jk. But I let them know that you can't be bored if you're constantly on the go, you can be tired, or exhausted, but not bored.

Answer 2

I totally feel you!
Sometimes I don't think that people realize how much I am juggling everyday. I go to school full time, take care of our daughter. "Pick up" the house (it could be cleaner), take our daughter to speech therapy twice a week, am constantly doing homework and trying to watch her at the same time. Between f/t school and being a SAHM I have a very tough f/t job without pay! And I know some people think I'm just sitting around picking my nose.

No advice really, just commiserating.

Maybe come back with a comment like, "I don't have time to get bored, do you realize what I do everyday?" Then ask them how they can sit in an office for 8 hours a day and not get bored.. (or something pertaining to their field).

Good luck!

Answer 3

LOL I used to think the same thing. Until I stayed home for a while.

My response would be "I don't have time to get bored! Between the kids, house, appointments, my sewing business, my grandma, my volunteer work with Cub Scouts, school and church, I'm lucky if I have any time to put my feet up! I stay pretty busy!" Then just laugh.

They probably just aren't sure what to talk to you about. Right now I am working FT (we can't afford for me not to, even with our frugal ways) and still have a lot of work going on, but had NO CONCEPT of how much work staying home, volunteering and being involved with the kids was. It takes up a lot of time. People who have never done it have no concept.

:-)

Answer 4

I am not a stay at home mom, so I can understand why others think you would have time to be bored. You aren't going into work every morning and then coming home for a few hours. You stay home.
I understand how much work it takes, though. Just tell them a few of the things you do. Taking care of gma, sewing for the shop, house work. They might not appreciate all that there is to do to keep a house running.

Sounds like you are doing a great job!

Answer 5

I would just say "NO,I don't have time for that,but if you can fit it into your schedule that's great" then walk away. Then,when the kids are at practice,go get yourself a nice cup of hot cocoa and just let down,or if you can,take a nice long warm soak in the tub and grab a washcloth and squeeze it like you were after that person who annoyed you,hey it works for me :) Good luck,and congrats on being able to stay home,but girl you need a break,sit back,sip some tea and watch The View LOL

Answer 6

I'm not a mother, but if I were you I would be like wear my shoes for a week and then tell me if get bored. I would really probably get mean, cause I am a beotch! My sister is a single mother of three and I can speak for her when I say she doesn't have time to think about being bored, she might need a vacation! Keep doing what your doing girlie, forget this person! All that matters is that your happy! :)

Answer 7

I have 2 children under 5 and I'm constantly tasked to answer similar questions... I find the best thing to do is simply say no, smile, and change the subject. You kind of get used to it after a while.... most people who ask you this have no children and don't understand the great task of keeping house and raising kids. Their is nothing "boring" about it. Good luck and try to just brush it off, you can't change how the world thinks....just how you address it.

Answer 8

I know exactly what you mean. The other assumption is that I'm available 24/7 to look after their kids or drive for school events or "fill in the blank". I used to answer if I'm bored I go for coffee or read a book or take a bath, that usually shut them up. Now, I just tell them I have the best life and wouldn't trade it for anything.

Answer 9

I'm not a stay-at-home mom (indeed, I'm not a mom at all), but you don't have to be a mom to encounter/suffer rude people, rude questions, etc. For me, those questions usually pertain to my marital status - as a 36-year-old single woman, the questions tend towards the "Why aren't you married?" variety.

I could get upset with these people, or I could make the effort to justify my choices, but I prefer to pick my battles. If you try to correct everyone's misperceptions about you, you're in for a lot more work than you already have - and what difference does it really make what these random people think anyway? By getting upset about their questions, you're giving them more power than they deserve.

If your husband and children appreciate the things you do for them, and you're happy with your decisions, there's no reason to be upset by other peoples' ignorance. You can simply look at them in such a way that they begin to feel like morons and drop the subject.

Answer 10

That is an ignorant question. If a working mother comes to me with a question like that I always say "I do the same thing you pay your daycare worker to do now do you think she gets bored?"

Usually that shuts them up real fast. If you have the same rude question simply answer by saying " How could I get bored I am out spending my hubbies money all day and laugh hysterically."

Or you can say I don't have time to get bored and I too busy enjoying my children.