Women Reveal What They Love About Being 'Mom'
A toddler’s playground can be the stage for bickering, fighting and name calling, and that’s just from the moms. An on-going “I can do it better than you feud” has long raged between working and stay-at-home moms, yet all mothers everywhere are tied together by one common thread – love for their children. Despite the obvious differences in lifestyle, a stay-at-homer and a working mom share what they adore about the crazy world of motherhood.
Working mom Susan Rosenblum is based in Brooklyn, NY and has commuted back and forth to her job as a legal secretary in Manhattan since her son, Jason, was a baby. “It was easier to go to work when he was little than it is now,” she admits. “I had someone I trusted taking care of him and knew he was safe. Now that he’s older and a lot more involved in school, I wish I had more hours to assist with schoolwork. Between Spanish, math and music, there just isn’t enough time, ever, to do everything that needs to get done. Even though I’m not home every minute of every day, I’ve loved watching him grow and seeing the person he has become,” she adds.
Stay-at-home mom Holly Rodriguez may have the best of both worlds – a part-time job she manages from the house and a flexible schedule allowing her to spend as much time as she needs to with her children. “I love my new alarm clock – my 20-month old son – reciting his ABC’s first thing in the morning and the feeling of his heartbeat in sync with mine when he falls asleep in my arms,” says the Richmond, VA native, who thrills at every soccer goal her daughter scores and considers her children to be her greatest teachers. “I love how my children have taught me the healing power of laughter in just about every situation – from funerals to poo in the bathtub - and how, in my quest for perfection, they have taught me to embrace what is less than perfect,” she says.
Rosenblum agrees, despite a hard-lined schedule and the demands of city life. “What I love about a being a mom, just so many things,” she says. “I love seeing myself and my chatterbox ways reflected in Jason, who is so much like me. But what I love the most, I think, is simply the everyday things that bind us together as a family. Even as Jason gets older, I can’t believe I produced this human being. All moms hope to leave a legacy because our kids are the future. You pray you’ve laid the right groundwork, but also have to let go of the reigns and let them fly, hoping in your heart you gave them the right tools to do so.
Not all moms earn a paycheck, but certainly, no one would argue that moms don't work. Some commute to jobs and see their kids a little less than they would like. Others spend their days smelling the roses and sometimes wish, maybe, for a break and the opportunity to put on a clean shirt and pair of high heels. No matter how they spend their days, all have stories to share about spilled milk, dried tears, unstoppable giggles and the joy of being a mom.
Corey Whelan is a freelance writer in New York. Her work can be found at Examiner.com.
