stay at home moms...i want to hear from you?

Question

are you a stay at home mother to your child(ren)? I am to my one year old son and 8 yr old daughter...what do you o during the day??? do you just stay in??? How do you keep from going insane?

Answer 1

Im a stay at home mom, I have a 4 yr old daughter. Everyday My Husband and I make alot of sacrifices so that I can stay at home with our beautiful little girl. We dont have fancy things, or go on lavished trips or spend alot of money on things we want. Our daughters needs are met first and foremost and that means giving up alot of things. We have a puppy and during the day, my daughter and I take her on a walk, weather permitting. We watch videos together and she plays alot with her toys while I am doing my house work. Sometimes we take a nap. Fixing dinners and lunch I allow her to help me. She has chores to do around the house, she is a really good helper, she helps me load and unload the dish washer and fold and put away laundry. Fortunatly our relatives live near by so we sometimes get out of the house and go visit family and friends. I have some friends that have kids about the same age of my daughter and we sometimes get together and let the kids play at the park or home. So I do get some adult contact thru out the day, that helps keep me from going insane. I just think of being a stay at home mom as a blessing. Its not an easy thing to do and I applaud the moms that have to work and cant stay at home because they are making sacrifices for their children as well, they just have to do it in a different way than I do it.

Answer 2

I'm a stay at home mom to a 2 1/2 yr old daughter and a 2 wk old son. I love being at home with my kids; but you're right...after a while, you start going insane. I have found myself talking baby talk to adults! I have a couple of friends that are sahm and I try to get together with them at least once a month. It's great if you can get sahm friends, you get the adult conversation and the support group. I've also picked up a few hobbies. I cross stitch and scrapbook and read A LOT! Financially, we've learned to cut corners, clip coupons, and juggle. It's constant work, but it's worth it...most of the time! ;)

Answer 3

Well, I have a 5 year old and 7 year old boys.
My 7 year old is in school full-time and my 5 year old goes to preschool 3 days a week.

When they're both gone, I veg.. seriously.. I grab my coffee, turn the TV to something OTHER than cartoons, and relax. Watch Montell, Maury, and whatever trash i can find. I only have 4 hours of peace and quiet and I enjoy every minute of it. I do have a parttime job working 2.5 hours 3 days a week in the evenings, but I am home most of the time.

Oh, and to keep from going insane, I am here on Y!A

Answer 4

I go OUT as much as possible. I have 1 and 3 yr. old boys and although sometimes its a pain to get everyone ready, packed and in the van I've noticed that I'm much less frazzled at the end of the day if we've gotten out a bit. It's also great when you get to talk to other adults. I've never been so happy to talk to the check out girl at the grocery store. We go to the library, children's museum, the zoo, nature centers and forest preserves, stores that have a play area, mall with a play area, the parks, our park district, we take walks, play dates,explore downtown, visit friends and family, McDonalds playland, anything in our yard... I think that my boys behave much better when they are out in public and there seems to be a lot less yelling than when we stay home all day. I think it's a good experience for them and for me to go to new places. I'm also proud that when we go out as a family my boys are usually very well behaved because they know what is expected of them. I do usually have one day a week that we stay home all day, stay in our jammies late, play games and watch movies so I can get some house work done. Recently I've added some time just for me and I get up at an insane hour of the morning and go work out, then come home and shower and get ready ALONE. It's been wonderful and I feel much better and have more patience during the day. A nice night out with hubby or the girls is always a great stress buster too.

How do we afford it? We made it a priorty and make the sacrafices necessary (no fancy house, new cars, vacation, etc). I'm grateful that we can make it work, some can't. Some can and just want the "stuff" and whine about having to work. Some need to work for their personal satifaction and I can certainly understand that. I'm looking forward to going back to work myself when my kids are in school full time and went back to night school right after my son was born. Also a big sanity saver. Gives me a great sense of accomplishment when I ace a class. I only take one at a time, but it's a goal and something just for me right now. Just the ride in the car with the music up loud makes it worth it.

Answer 5

Im a Stay at home mom. I have 4 kids, but 2 are in school full days mon-fri so I only have the 4yr old and 1 1/2yr old at home with me during the days.
We do lots of stuff..I generally have errands to run at least once a week, they help clean..not because I make them, but because they think its fun...we usually make a game of it...aside from that, Mia has her nap (the 1 1/2yr old) at about 1130 every day and Zac is usually in his room for quiet time so he doesnt wake her up..so he'll watch a movie or play on the computer...after that we eat and then play and then we have to pick up the big boys from school and stuff. We keep busy :)

Answer 6

I'm a dad and I don't stay at home. But my wife tends to go insane once in a while. Here are some suggestions I gave to her. Caus eof course she tells me " You stay home and see how bored you get" LOL She takes them to the library, and even short wakes, even when its cold. The cold weather won't make you sick and even if its for 5-10 minutes its enough to break up the day a little. I suggest to her to fill up the sink with water, and give the kids beach toys to play with, buckets, shouvles, thnigs like that. Does make a mess but it allows her to get some things done. I also made a indoor sand box. Kinda small but makes them feel like there outside a little bit. Also taking them to the store. Now I know you moms might think there all over the place, but if youtake them with the intention of just getting them out and not to shop, it may work. These are just suggestions and of course I don't stay at home. But I use these things on th weekends when My wife is out shopping or whatever

Answer 7

I stay home with my 2 year old daughter. And im not gonna lie, its not always so easy. Since the weather has been cold and rainy its been tough to get out and honestly just put me in a bummed out mood! Usually what I like to do is go to the gym 2-3 times a week. They have a free nursery so It gives me a few hours to work out and work on losing those last 10lbs, and it gives her a chance to play with other kids and get out of the house too. We also go to the park, the zoo, Chuck e cheese and the mall a lot. Call me crazy, but during the week i LOVE to go to Chuck e cheese! Its practically empty because all other kids are in school and my daughter really gets to run around a burn up lots of energy...shes usually asleep before we can pull out of the parking lot! I get great coupons online and its really not too expensive at all! Its a great one especially when the weather's not too great. If your child is a good shopper you can try just walking around the mall too. I like to do this just to get out and stay moving, again, especially when the weather isnt great for being outside.

Answer 8

I'm a newly sahm. I love it! I do get very bored at times. I have two other friends that are also sahm moms so its great to see them at least once a week. We try to take the kids out, even if its just to babies r us. I love when the weekends come because thats when my husband and I get to spend some time together and we see my family. During the day when we are home though, I try to get all the pictures in order that I take and try to keep the house picked up. Saving money is a big priority for us, so we don't order out and I have yet to get a few new clothes for myself! I plan on it soon though, Marshalls is always good!

Answer 9

I sah with seven kids, and we also homeschool. I don't know how anyone would survive just staying home, we are out nearly every day of the week, at parks, libraries, museums. We have a long list of all the free places we can hit, and make it a point to purchase memberships for other places. It's worth the money and budgeting for that is like any other monthly bill.

For those who ask how you can afford to sah with your kids, we plan really well how we spend our money. We don't eat out a lot, and we don't buy convenience foods (which save you maybe ten minutes prep and cost twice as much). We don't buy brand new designer clothes, but go to the Just Between Friends consignment sale twice a year, where we can often buy nearly new clothes for a dollar each. Because I don't work, we don't have to pay for babysitting, we don't pay for meals out, we don't have to buy me a professional wardrobe, and we save a ton on gas.

And to give credit where it's due, my husband works very hard at his job, and has gotten promoted and received outside contracts for his work. He could make more if he was independent, but his priority is family and traveling would ruin that.

Answer 10

I am a stay at home mom to my 5month old daughter and I also occasionally babysit for my best friend (4yr old &2yr old). Lately I have been staying in because of the weather but when its nice out we go to the park(it is right across the street). We just watch nick jr and read books, play games. To stay sane I have a girls night once a week and leave my daughter with my husband.