Tuesday, July 11, 2006

How lucky I am

I did two things today. This morning I met my girlfriend at our town lake and spent a few hours in the sunshine just hanging out and playing in the water with Leah. In the late afternoon I took Leah to her first ever dance class. It was a huge success and she really enjoyed it.

I bring this up because I overheard a conversation while watching Leah at her dance class. Apparently most of the people (parents of the kids in class) worked full time. There was one guy who works as a sales rep from his home office and his wife works in New York City. They have two young daughters. He was saying that his wife leaves the house at 6:45 a.m. to catch a train and doesn't come home until around 7 p.m. He works until about 6:30 p.m. when his nanny leaves.

Right there it hit me how incredibly lucky I really am. Instead of sitting on an overcrowded train this morning, I snuggled with my daughter. I got to dig holes in the sand instead of sitting through another corporate meeting. My husband, daughter and I sat down to a meal together and talked about our day.

I understand that for many families it is not an option to have one parent stay at home. Single parents must work to provide for their children. And for some, a fulfilling career is not something they want to just give up.

Some days being a stay-at-home mom can be overwhelming. There have been times that I just can't wait for Joe to get home so I can high-tail it out of here. I guess that sometimes you just need a gentle reminder about how fortunate you really are. I'm a stay at home mom and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Leah Ballerina

21 comments:

chichimama said...

Totally with you on this one. And she is adorable! Hope she enjoyed dance class...

Lisa~~ said...

Leah is adorable as a ballerina.

C's Mom said...

The dancing queen is too cute.

I'll be a single momma but am fortunate to have some flexibility with my partners regarding call and office hours. It won't be easy but nothing worth having ever is. The rewards will be worth it.

I am also thankful for the blessings in my life that make the biggest blessing of all, becoming a mom, possible.

Juliet said...

What a cute dancer Leah is! ^_^

It is a blessing to be a stay-at-home mom. I know I love it!

Joannah said...

You are blessed!

~Crystal~ said...

Great post!
Leah is so precious!

Kristin said...

Great post, Stephanie... and Leah just looks soooo cute!

Robin said...

What a precious ballarina you have. Enjoy every minute of your time with them. When my children were young, I had to work. When the youngest finally hit kindergarten, I decided to stay-at-home. We struggled but it worked. It was worth it too. When I finally returned to work, my youngest would tell me that she wanted me home just because she felt better knowing I was there. (vs. working and not being there) Before she hit high school, I was able to start working remotely. Best of both worlds for me. I hope it continues so I can be home and working when Maddy arrives. :-)

Kim said...

You are so blessed, Stephanie. You are so fortunate to have such a beautiful, sweet child and be able to stay home with her.

butterfly cocoon said...

I'm a sahm and feel blessed too. Overwhelmed a lot as well, but always fortunate to be able to stay home with my kids.
Leah looks adorable!

Puddin' said...

What a beautiful ballerina!

I am also so thankful to be able to stay at home with my kids!! It's definately NOT "eating bon-bons" all day, that's for sure! ;-)

j.sterling said...

she is adorable!!!! ADORABLE!

Anonymous said...

She is so beautiful!

It's nice when you sit back and realise just how lucky you are!


Alexandra

asiangard said...

Yes, I know the feeling of being lucky to stay at home!..although I do work two days, there are five days that I don't!
Leah looks beautiful! I bet she is loving that class!

Fraulein said...

Hi there -- just stumbled on your blog from Crazy Hip Blog Mamas. I'm originally from northern N.J. myself. And your daughter reminds me a bit of my daughter, who I call the Peanut on my blog (I'm guessing your husband is Chinese?) I'm white and my husband is Chinese, and the Peanut is 21 months old now.

Good luck with the adoption -- hope all goes well! And happy blogging!

Fraulein said...

(Should have mentioned that if you scroll through my blog, you can find pictures of the Peanut.)

Ann said...

Leah is gorgeous. You work it, staying at home is a job all in itself and I'm sure that you too are exhausted at the end of the day. One day I aspire to be a SAHM too...now if I could just convince dh of this.

K. said...

I loved reading this post. Your daughter Leah is absolutely beauiful!

Georgia said...

Waaahhhh!! I want to be a SAHM, too!! Alas, it's not to be. Count your blessings and love on that beautiful girl of yours.

I'm a closet ABBA fan and I can't stop singing, "Nina, Pretty Ballerina

Andie D. said...

Everytime I see a picture of Leah, I say "Awww!" And not just to myself.

OUTLOUD!

You hit the nail on the head. I'm grateful to have the opportunity to be a SAHM too. I worked full time when my oldest was born. I feel like I missed out on so much.

Christina said...

As usual Leah looks adorable. Maybe you better have a boy since she is so pretty you might have some sibling rivalry.