I'm guessing most mothers will nod their heads in understanding when I say that...but for those of you whose gut response is, "You shouldn't be ashamed! You've earned the right to work if you want to!" I'll try to explain.When I was pregnant, I thought I'd probably stay home with our baby until she was at least two years old. It was a random number, and I didn't have any hard-and-fast rule, but that sounded like a reasonable length of time to give her a sense of security and stability (not like I had any idea what I was talking about at that point, or how I'd feel later).
About six months after she was born (probably even sooner), I started going a little stir-crazy. This would seem completely logical to any sane person -- after all, I'd been in the workforce since I was at least 14 years old (ahhh, those were the days, when my biggest responsibilities were shaving chocolate and capping strawberries for pies at Baker's Square). I'd been earning a paycheck for nearly two-thirds of my life. Still, my feelings surprised me. I had expected that since I was nearly 40 when I'd had my daughter, I'd truly enjoy being a stay-at-home-mom. I'd enjoy the change of pace...at least for awhile.
I can safely say that I had no idea what I was in for...being a stay-at-home-mom is exhausting!!!
