Oh. So you don't work?

Moving to a new town has been an adventure. A great one. It has had it's ups and downs. I've been sad and excited all at the same time. We have been here for a little over 2 months. With Lyndon becoming the new pastor of the Christian Church in town (A small town) people know who we are. I was out and about one day with the boys and I started having a conversation with a lady from town. She asked if my husband was the new pastor here in town. I said yes. She then asked me what I do. I proudly told her that I stay home with my boys, they are one and two years old. She looked me in the eye and said, "Oh, so you don't work?"

My first reaction was shock. I looked at her all nervous and shy and said, "Well, not outside the home." Our conversation eventually came to a close and we went our separate ways. When I was driving home with my kids in the back seat talking gibberish to each other I just sat in silence thinking. What do people think stay-at-home moms do? Watch the kids tear the house up and then our husband comes home to save the day? Hardly. It hurt my feelings at first, then frustrated me, then made me realize I don't think people actually know, or care to know, what happens all day when you stay home. It's not glitz and glamour. However, I wouldn't change it for the world.

Each day is different and my calendar is usually packed full of things each day. Yes, I am not bringing in an income while I am busy, but I am raising two boys who will eventually become young men and I am training them day by day to become Godly men and human beings people want to be around.

I just figured I would make a list of what I do on a normal day, majority of the time. There are always different things popping up through the weeks, but I usually have the same routine different days of the week.

7:00 AM- Wake Up. Lyndon is up at this time also and jumps into the shower. The boys wake up also and I get them up and ready for the day. Lyndon or I go straight into the kitchen and get a sippy cup of juice and a bottle for Collyn. I rock Collyn for a good 15-20 minutes and Alden sits on the couch and watches a TV show, usually Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

7:30 AM- Breakfast. Lyndon is out of the shower and getting ready for the day. I start breakfast for the boys. I make a hot breakfast every morning. Even if it is just frozen waffles and some yogurt. We rarely eat cereal. I get the boys set up in their chairs and hand them their food.

7:45 AM- Lyndon leaves for work. I clean up breakfast and get the boys clothes for the day. I change diapers (Yes, I still have 2 in diapers) and change them into their clothes. They go into the bathroom and we brush teeth and hair. They are ready for the day.

8:00 AM- I turn on one more show for the boys and I get into the shower. I never shower alone. The TV show only works for a couple minutes before I have at least one boy in the bathroom. I can usually get shampoo in my hair and Collyn usually tends to go for the toilet bowl brush and tries to run out of the bathroom with it. I grab him just in time and put it back in its spot and climb back into the shower. Collyn is the sneaky one and will get onto the toilet and get into the medicine cabinet. This is the reason there is nothing on one side of our cabinet. I have to get after him the whole time I shower (4-5 minutes). His other favorite thing to do is to throw my bra in the shower while the water is on. What a fun game. I get ready for the day with kids at my feet asking questions, wanting to be held, wanting me to fix a toy, having 20 questions in 20 seconds, wanting to watch another show, etc. I am lucky to throw my hair into a pony tail and put some mascara on.

8:30 - 10:30 AM- Clean. I clean every day. EVERY DAY! I have 2 toddlers. This is all I do. My morning routine is to go room to room and get things clean so the boys can mess it up again. I open the window shades, vacuum the living room and dining room, make beds, vacuum bedrooms, start the dishes from the night before (I don't do my dishes after dinner) and start a load of laundry. After I get everything completely clean, I go back into the living room and start again. Because, by this point the boys have pulled toys from the toy room into the living room and they are only playing with 2 or 3 of the 50 they pulled out.

10:30 - 11:30 AM- I will usually take time to play with the boys on the ground. I will read books with them, play hide and seek, or sit and play with cars with them. This, for some reason, is about the time people stop by our house. I guess it's the perfect time for a visit. I will have a conversation with the person that visits and watch my kids pull more toys out for the toy room that they will play with for another 10 minutes and move on from.

11:30 AM - 1:00 PM- Right before noon I start lunch. Again, I make a hot meal for lunch. Sometimes, by request (Alden's) we will have macaroni and cheese or canned ravioli. I will sometimes make grilled cheese or tuna sandwiches with soup of some kind. If I am really motivated I will go as far as spaghetti, sloppy joes, or hamburgers and homemade French fries. Lyndon is home at noon for lunch, so we eat lunch together as a family. Lyndon talks about what has been going on during the morning. At 12:30, I get a bottle for Collyn and rock him to sleep for his nap. Collyn naps from 12:30-2:30 PM.

1:00 PM- Lyndon has left to go back to work and Collyn is down for his nap. I clean up the lunch dishes and wash them by hand because there usually isn't a lot of them. I move laundry and fold and put away what was in the dryer. The, I go back in to the living room and clean up all the toys that were left from the morning. Alden will (Sometimes) take a nap during the day. It is usually about 1:30- 2:30 PM. If he falls asleep I will start one of my TV shows that I record and sit for a while and get on Facebook or work on my crochet project.

2:30 PM- The boys wake up from their naps. Double diaper change. It is snack time, so I make a plate for each boy and get them sat to eat it. Then, I clean up the mess.

3:00 PM- Usually the time we run errands that need to be done. Post office, grocery store, Bank, Library, visit Lyndon at work etc.

4:30 PM- Home from errands and I get the boys back into the house and they start playing with their toys again. I will move laundry if there is any left and I will pull out the meat for dinner.

5:00 PM- Start dinner. Lyndon comes home at 5:00 so he will play with the boys. I cook dinner, usually with one or both boys in there with me, because bothering mom is way more fun than toys at that point of the day. Collyn likes to sit on the counter while I cook and watch. I set the table for dinner and everyone is cranky and hungry by this point so it tends to be pretty loud in the house.

5:45 or 6: Dinner. Both boys plate are made. Grace is said. then, we attempt to eat dinner as a family. Collyn usually is throwing food on the floor and Alden likes to get down from his chair and convince us after two bites he is done and full. So, I am picking up food the whole time, taking a bite, putting a two year old back in his seat, taking a bite, getting kids more food, taking a bite, refilling drinks, taking a bite.

6:30- Clean up dinner. I refuse to do the dishes after dinner. I leave them for the morning. I get everything off the table, wipe everything up and sit down for a couple minutes to breathe and talk to Lyndon.

7:00 - 7:30- Bath time. This is an adventure all it's own. Water everywhere. He stole my toy, Collyn unplugging the drain (Notice a trend with Collyn), I don't want shampoo tonight, crying because their is water in their eyes, I don't want to get out. I dry them off and get them dressed for bed.

8:30- Collyn's bed time. I get Collyn's bottle ready and Lyndon will rock him to sleep and put him in his bed.

9:00- Alden's bed time. At this point, I will sit in bed and watch some TV or read my book. Lyndon will sit in the living room for a while and then venture in to the bedroom a little while after me. This is the time we are actually able to sit and talk.

10:00- I usually crash. I am exhausted.

Not every day is the same routine.

Tuesdays the boys have play group that I go to with them.

During the week I make the church bulletins for Sunday service. I do this with two kids with me by the copier. I copy them at the church, but Lyndon has people in and out of his office, so if anyone comes, I shut us in the copy room and the boys sit quietly while I copy the bulletins.

I make dinner for the youth group every Wednesday. I love it. That is something I love to do. I make this meal every week with both kids at my feet. We have youth group at our house. I have two kids with me the whole time.

I have 2 days a week that I do Zumba. It is an hour twice a week that I am able to go to. This is one of my getaways.

I don't think people understand what it takes to be a stay-at-home mom. I have 2 kids in diapers. I have 2 kids in car seats. When you work, you go to lunch. You go to your car, climb in, start it and go. I get to the car, have Alden stand against the car, throw the diaper bag, my purse, and the car keys in the front seat, strap in Collyn, go around the car, get Alden strapped in, climb in, get everyone happy and go. Then, the routine is backwards to get out. It takes 3 times as long just to go to the store for milk than a normal person.

I am never alone. I always have a child by my feet. I rarely have a night where I don't have a child climbing into bed with me.

I never have a day off. Even of family vacations, I am working at my job. My kids are my job.

I wouldn't change it for the world.

I feel like people think being home is a piece of cake. Just sit around, watch soaps, and let the kids run wild. Not the case at all. Most days I can barely keep my eyes open after 9 PM. I wake up exhausted.

In the last 2 1/2 years, I haven't had a day off or a sick day. I am always working....

So, the lady who I ran into in town, Yes. I do work. Pretty dang hard actually.