You do what for a living?

Asking someone what they do for a living is the age old small talk ice breaker. When running into old friends or making new ones it is not likely you will escape the conversation without being asked. For stay at home moms like me, this has become a dreaded topic. Not because I feel like my work at home is any less than your work outside of the home but because of the responses (or faces) that usually follow the "I stay at home with my children" reply.

Here are some of my favorites.......

1. "I wish I could sit at home all day" - Yes, because sitting is what I get to do. Ever.
2. "It must be so nice to get to nap when you want" - What is a nap?
3. "I would get to watch all my favorite shows" - I hope your favorite shows are cartoons!
4. "You must get bored" - This is laughable.
5. "I could get all my chores done during the week instead of the weekend" - Good luck with that. Try squeezing "all" your choirs in during nap time.

I usually laugh it off because it really isn't worth my time trying to explain to them what exactly being a stay at home mom to a baby and a toddler means. It means I am a cook, a maid, a nurse, a judge, a detective, a teacher, a chauffeur, a referee, a jungle gym and a story teller. I am a lap to sit in and a shoulder to cry on. It means I am on call 24 hours a day 7 days a week. I don't get sick or vacation days. It means my wages come in the form of hugs and kisses.

It means I have the best job in the world!