A lot of my friends have asked me, “Do you get bored now that you’re not working?” I left my job last August and the truth is, I thought I would be, but I quickly realized I was a lot more bored at my job than I am being a housewife. In fact, I absolutely love being a housewife. Sitting at a desk for over three years literally doing the same thing day in and day out became mundane and miserable. I went from loving it to literally dreading Sunday nights knowing I had to go back for another full week. Once I left, a world of possibilities opened up and were at the tip of my fingers. Before leaving my job, my husband and I had several conversations about work schedules once I have the baby and they all came down to either me only working part-time or not at all.
So what does a day in life of a non-working pregnant chick consist of? Well, everyday is a little different, but never dull or boring. In fact, I feel busier now than I did before and I often wonder how on earth I got everything done when I had a full-time job. Usually the beginning of my weeks I spend cleaning the house, doing laundry and running errands such as grocery shopping. My house has seriously never been so consistently clean because being home, I’ve had the time and energy to do it. Although, I expect that to change a bit for the first few months after our baby girl is here. I’m well aware life is going to be turned upside down and that every day life will be an adjustment. Along with housewifely chores, I have a lot of friends who work close by or who have flexible work schedules so I plan a lot of lunch and shopping dates during the week. I also have the time, energy and flexibility to keep up with my exercise routine. Which I must admit, I feel certain that if I were still working full-time my back would be bothering me a lot more as I’ve realized that sitting down and not moving is what really bothers my pregnant back. So being active and moving around all day has only helped me. I also love having the time to cook new and healthy meals. When my husband and I were both working full-time, I felt like by the time we got out of work, finished a workout and had dinner made and cleaned up it was time for bed. Now, I can have dinner ready any time I want and I have more time and energy to cook more in depth meals. My husband loves coming home to a clean house, dinner ready and stuff just being done. But let’s face it, what man wouldn’t? Me being home has given us so much more time to spend together. Before, it felt like our entire weekend was spent cleaning, doing laundry and doing errands, and after work was spent fitting in a workout, cooking dinner and cleaning up the dish mess. Having an entire day to get it all done is pretty damn awesome. Not working has also given me the time to really prepare for the arrival of our baby girl. My husband put the crib together, moved the furniture in and helped decorate, but in terms of putting things away, cleaning her clothes and laundry and making sure we have everything we need has been my job. Aside from all the housewifely duties, I’ve also connected with a lot of friends and new people regarding possible part-time work from home job opportunities. I’ve visited the career center, networked, done a lot of research and continue to dig deep into what I really want to do going forward if I accept a job. Either way, my husband and I continue to agree that part-time is what will be best for our growing family.
I’m literally 33 days away from my due date, and while I still feel really good for the most part, I can feel my body getting more tired and achy. I’ve started experiencing things like Braxton Hicks or just achy muscles from things shifting, expanding and carrying around the added weight. So, last week I had two days where I really took it easy. I didn’t get much done around the house and I focused on taking care of myself. When I told my husband I felt a bad housewife because I didn’t get much done, he told me that I’m making a baby and that he just wants me to relax and take care of myself. So, now that the end is near, on the days I feel like I just need to take care of me and rest, that’s exactly what I do. As for today, my agenda includes cleaning our upstairs bathroom, laundry, vacuuming, going grocery shopping, cooking dinner and fitting in a trainer ride when my hubby gets home.
The truth is, being a housewife might not come with a paycheck, but I am working all day long and my husband reminds me of that weekly. For now, I’m off to go switch my laundry and get to the grocery store. But I’ll be sure to keep you all posted on what a day in the life of a “non-working” mommy entails which is right around the corner!
~Sparke