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| Jill
Savage is the founder and Executive Director of Hearts
at Home, an organization designed to encourage, educate,
and equip women in the profession of motherhood. |
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Hearts at Home
You're Still at Home and Your Kids are in School
CBN.com –I could hardly believe the day had arrived. Because of the spacing of our five children, we’d had a preschooler at home for 17 years. For the first time in my career as a mom, I now had all of my children in full-day school. What would I do with myself?
The question is still posed to me regularly, “Now that all of your children are in school, what are you doing?” When I respond that I remain committed to full-time motherhood, the question that follows is: “Why?” While there are fewer of us home full-time when our children enter school, most who remain home do so with the same convictions I have. Let me share with you why I think the profession of motherhood is still a valid career choice for me:
Maintaining The Energy To Parent—It is so difficult for me to put in a full days work outside of the home and come home feeling ready to handle the challenges of parenting children. Keeping a strong marriage takes energy as well. With homemaking as my profession, it is the activity to which I give my primary energy.
After School Hours—A recent study was conducted with sexually active teenagers. When asked when and where they most often had sex, the most common reply was in their own homes between the hours of 3pm-5pm! My children need my presence for accountability, for encouragement, and for communication. Those hours after school are also when they talk most about their day, their struggles, their hopes, and their fears. An after school snack and a listening ear are important parts of my long-term career goal of helping my children mature and learn about the world in which they live. I don’t want to miss that.
Parenting Responsibilities—I don’t believe it’s my oldest child’s responsibility to parent her siblings. While she is certainly capable of caring for her brothers and sister on occasion, and even being an occasional taxi driver for extracurricular activities, she doesn’t need that responsibility every day after school, on school holidays, or during the summer.
Sick Days, Field Trips, Volunteer Opportunities—Being available to care for a sick child at home without concern of how many personal days I’ve used up at the office is emotionally freeing to me. Accompanying field trips or helping out at the school are valuable ways for me to stay involved in my children’s education. The school, the church, and the community need volunteers who have time and energy to help with worthwhile endeavors. I believe that’s a good use of my education and my skills.
Laundry, Meals, and the Fine Art of Homemaking—Just because everyone is in school, there’s still the same amount of laundry, the same meals to prepare, and the same house to manage. There are appointments to make, bills to pay, and groceries to buy. I never lack for something to do.
Many moms use this season to return to school themselves or pursue part-time employment just during the school year, while keeping family the priority. It’s a good season to explore some of those opportunities. I now have the time to do more speaking and writing than I’ve done in the past. However, with a high schooler and two junior highers, there’s plenty of work to be done at home and in the lives of my children. Even my two grown children need their mom occasionally. I still believe there’s no better profession than the profession of motherhood!
Jill Savage (www.jillsavage.org) is the founder and Executive Director of Hearts at Home (www.hearts-at-home.org), an organization designed to encourage, educate, and equip women in the profession of motherhood. She is the author of five books including Professionalizing Motherhood, Is There Really Sex After Kids?, and her newest release My Heart’s At Home. Jill and her husband, Mark, have five children and make their home in Central Illinois.
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