A Day In The Life of a Stay At Home Mom

I used to wonder what a day in the life of a stay at home mom was like. In fact, if I’m being honest, I used to imagine that it was incredibly boring.

Of course, this coming from a girl who was almost entirely convinced that she was never going to be a mom.

Cooking? Cleaning? Eating bon bons while watching your favorite soap opera?

Hard pass, thanks.

What do stay at home moms do every day?

Try not to hold it against my former self. Girlfriend didn’t know what she didn’t know.

The fact is, a day in the life of a stay at home mom is exhausting work. It’s mentally taxing, emotionally challenging, and physically draining.

Add in a homestead to run and homeschool to manage?

Let’s just say I earn my twice weekly naps.

Because what a SAHM does every day is pours herself out, mops herself up, and then pours herself out again.

In the same spot.

And no one even really notices.

So that’s cool.

Seriously, though, let me give you a quick run down of what you might catch me, a stay at home mother, doing on any given day:

• Waking up at 530 in an attempt to get some time alone.
• Having my toddlers join me a mere 15 minutes later because if mom’s up, we’re all up.
• Hearing, within the first 20 seconds of my youngest two crawling onto my lap, that they would like a snack.

A snack! Not even breakfast, no, we jump right to the very phrase that has the ability to make the hairs stand up on the backs of moms necks all across the world.

• Making breakfast for the snack monsters.
• Making another breakfast for the older one when she manages to crawl out of bed.
• Reheating my coffee 19 times before taking a sip.
• Starting a load of laundry, dishes away, dishes back in the washer.
• Refereeing the boxing match taking place at the breakfast table over who’s side of the bench someone’s foot is straying to.

And generally, this all takes place before 8 am.

Still think stay at home moms have it easy?

There are more stay at home mother benefits than cons, though.

Okay, so I got a little cynical when describing my mornings, just then, but it’s a hard truth to face: it’s not glamourous.

Somedays, it’s not even fun.

Some times, it’s a full on raging battle, survival of the fittest, race to the bedtime finish line sort of day.

But.

It’s a gift. It’s a luxury. It’s a treasure to be appreciated. Because in all that I’m choosing to do, each day, the fact remains, I’m choosing to do it with my kids.

Working mom stumbling upon this article, I am not shaming you for not being with your kids all day every day. In fact, some days I envy you.

I’m just saying.

Being with them is the whole point. The greatest perk. The light at the end of a long, winding, twisting, dark, damp, sometimes slimy tunnel.

All of the cons that I can think of are pebbles in comparison to the mountain high benefit of being the primary care giver, nurturer, and influence in my children’s lives.

Stay at home moms get to raise their babies! What more of a benefit do you need?!

I’m not saying it’s easy. I’m not saying I enjoy every minute. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t peace out to Starbucks on the regular to work on your hobby turned business blog and drink coffee like it’s the living water.

I’m just saying… when you think about it from an eternal perspective…

A laying on your death bed wishing you had one more day to live perspective…

Are you thinking of all the alone time you didn’t have?

Or are you thinking of being with your kids?

Related post: Be Happy, Stay At Home Mom

How do stay at home moms make the most of the day?

In light of my previous, slightly morbid questions, let’s jump into how we can make the most of the day!

I don’t know about you, but every day in the life of this stay at home mom has the uncanny ability to feel like deja vous.

Yet, praise God, every morning is a new chance to make the most of the one precious life you live!

So, the best way that I’ve found to really make the most of each day, is to know who I am, know what I value, and operate from that space of self-awareness.

I also like to plan out, like, every second, but very rarely do we stick to schedule.

Three little tips for stay at home moms to make the most of every day:

• Know yourself. What makes you tick? What triggers the ugly side of you? When do you feel like you’re operating in your zone of genius? When are you and the kids the happiest at the same time?

• Know your values. We all value something. Often times, what we say we value and what our actions show that we value, aren’t in agreement. Get clear on what is important to you. Is it being a fun mom? Crafty? Clean and organized? I don’t think there is any right answer, and only you can decide for yourself.

(Check out this post for help clarifying your values!)

• Know how to stay the course. It’s easy to get side tracked when you have literally every little person, and every little mess, you ever created right in front of you, vying for your attention. When you veer off the path of what you planned or need to do because of peer pressure or mom guilt, your day can get away from you mega fast.

A day in the life of a stay at home mom:

• 6:00am: wake up to the demands of two hungry toddlers. I should have woken up at 530 to start my day alone, but they were both in our bed before 1 am and the youngest was eager to converse about everything in the universe around 3am.

• 6:15am: pour myself a coffee, give the todds a wholesome cereal bar to stave off their urgent needs, and relish in a few quiet-ish moments in my bible.

• 6:30am: journal while beginning round one of refereeing

• 6:45am: let the kids watch an episode of “Blaze” while I plan and get my life together

• 7:15am: round up the munchkins for a real breakfast in the kitchen

• 8:00am: shoes on and head out to the barn for barn chores (this, of course, is unique to homesteading families and not necessarily stay at home moms)

• 8:30am: push the kids on the swingset and let them run around in their pjs outside

• 9:00am: back inside, emptying the dishwasher (thank the good Lord that the oldest is able to do this dreaded chore), start a load of laundry, and refill the dishwasher with last night’s dinnerplates that “soaked” all night. #dontjudge

• 9:30am: give the kids some attention. Fill their cups, then send them off to play!

• 10:30am: it’s snack time. I have, of course, said no to about 35 requests for snacks in the three hours since we last ate, so I’m not slightly irritated by this point at all. Psh.

• 11:00am: try to encourage more outdoor play. In the summertime, this means swimming. In the winter, it means donning their rain suits and hitting the puddles.

• noon: lunch time. The kids are still requesting snacks instead of meals, and I’m still saying no. Even though everyone is “starving”, no one eats more than 1/4 of their plate. Wait, that’s not true, my ten year old does because she’s the bomb.

• 1:00pm: I’m wishing it were closer to 2 o’clock, but since it isn’t I do some more tidying up, more entertaining, more refereeing, while keeping my eyes on the clock.

• 2:00pm: the littlest is tired and whiney, the middlest is asking for tv, and the oldest is ready to settle down and watch crafty youtube channels for inspiration for her afternoon stake out at her craft desk. Tv goes on. If I’m lucky, the little one is asleep within half an hour.

This is when I take a stay at home mommy time out. Blogging work, reading, journaling again because I have all the thoughts… anything except housework.

• 4:00pm: everyone is tired of tv and has either fallen asleep on the couch or moved on to other things on their own accord. I thoroughly enjoy their independent play. Maybe I should start prepping dinner now?

• 5:00pm: waiting for daddy to get home because that is, thankfully, one of the highlights of our day! We are so blessed!

• 530/6:00pm: most of us eat dinner. Some of us refuse to even try ours despite the fact that we’ve been vocalizing how hungry we are for the last two hours (not naming any names, middlest one!)

• 7:00pm: one of the adults starts bedtime routine with the littles while the other adult takes the oldest one out for evening barn chores.

• 7:30pm: we reconvene at the family table and start setting up for our (almost) nightly ritual of Catan.

• 8:30pm: I’m yawning and saying how late it is and my family is mocking me for being an old lady.

• 9:00pm: I’m in bed reading a book until I fall asleep while daddy and the oldest do some channel surfing together. Setting my alarm for 5:30, hoping for the best, but more than willing to turn that baby off if my kids somehow find their way back into my bed again tonight.

Not every day finds me feeling as tired (or cynical) as the one in which this post was written. But I’m just trying to keep it real.

Stay at home mom life can be a challenge. There are days that find us all a little cranky by that 2pm rest time.

And there are other days where we’re all so busy having fun together that we forget to rest until after 3pm.

With school coming up at the end of August, the day will change, have more structure and routine. Ebbs and flows, folks, ebbs and flows.

The key to creating a solid family rhythm is to know what you want out of every day, prioritize, and always self reflect and assess.

Does this look anything like your day as a stay at home mom?