I Am A Stay At Home Dad

I am a stay at home dad. Its a statement I sometimes wear as a badge of pride, even though I don't think I am that great at it. For the past year I have been a stay at home dad, due to my business collapsing. I joined the ranks of the unemployed, along with millions of others. My first reaction was one of despair and a hopelessness, and a feeling of failure. Failure to my family, failure to myself. Luckily, my wife was able to start a job as a nurse, giving us an income to survive. I mean survive in the barest of terms, month to month, check to check. But surviving is better than not.

After my initial response of despair, I found my role in the family had changed. I became the one who dropped of the kids to school, attended school and sports functions, fed the children all the meals, cooked, cleaned, vacuumed, everything. I will confess, I don't do it nearly as well as my wife, but its a work in progress. Role reversal can be hard on some men, but for me, its a challenge, and a blessing. I get to spend time with my kids far more than I had before. I get to listen to their fights along with their accomplishments. I help them with their homework, and I make sure they look good for school. So there are excellent benefits to being a stay at home dad. However, Here are a few of the things that I do find more of a challenge, which maybe I didn't realize my wife had to face.

1. Laundry. I am amazed, that even with a family of four, that the dirty clothes are endless! I have a sister who has 10 kids, and is able to keep up with her laundry. I am daily washing, drying, folding, and hanging up clothes. Every time I think we got it under control, another load is done, and I am back at it again.

2. Cooking. I am not a cook. I don't know enough about cooking. By the time I figure out its dinner time, I put something in the microwave and give them some fruits or vegetables to make me feel not as guilty by giving them at least something that is healthy. Cooking is difficult for me, but really it comes down to time and having the necessary ingredients in the house. Which leads to the next issue.

3. Grocery Shopping. I am good at getting the staples, but try and get something that is out of the norm, I can spend hours looking for it. Figuring out what the kids will eat is an adventure as well. I am getting better at this, but learning to cook is on my list this year, along with being a better grocery shopper, including using coupons.

4. Kitchen cleaning. One of my better traits, I don't mind cleaning the kitchen, dishes etc. However, it along with the laundry seems never ending. I clean the kitchen, and one hour later its time to feed the kids again. Which means, more dishes, and more cleaning.

5. Keeping the kids entertained. Again, very challenging, kids have a short attention span, and if they are at home, they get bored very easy. As much as I love to play Xbox with my kids, this can go only so far. There are moms and dads that come up with some incredible ideas with their kids, I struggle with this, but of course try my hardest. Thankfully, if I fail to entertain, the neighbor kids come to the rescue.

These are just a few of the things that a stay at home dad, or mom has to do when taking care of the home while the spouse is working. It is work no different than a job. I have a huge respect for those who are more organized than me, and can do this job almost effortlessly, and have more kids than I do. My hats off to all who stay at home to take care of the kids. Sometimes I miss my job, but my new job has far more benefits and rewards. Difficult as it can be, I wouldn't trade it for the world.