grumble grumble

Dooce was all "hey, Stay-At-Home-Moms rock and we have the hardest jobs ever!" in her last post.

While I'm in no way denying that staying home with kids can be very hard - how come no one ever says "Hey, all you mothers who have to go to work every day and then come home and still be a hands on parent, plus everything else that you have to do - you rock too!"

I've said it before, but it drives me crazy when people say that being a stay at home mom is the most demanding job ever, its thankless, and unpaid, and blah blah blah. No. that's just not true. Being a PARENT is the most demanding job ever, is thankless, and goes unpaid, and blah blah blah. It makes no difference if you work or not. In fact, I guess I have TWO jobs, and I still don't get any time off from being a parent.

I'm not knocking stay at home mothers. If our finances ever allowed it, I would stay at home with my Baby Girl too (though apparently people close to me think I go to work each day for the enjoyment of it... that never ceases to amaze me. Have I not been clear in the past 19 months that I would stay home if I could?). However, I AM going to dispute the fact that it's only stay at home parents who have such a hard, thankless, and break free job.

It's called being a parent. And we all do it, whether or not we go to work each day.

So, rock on working moms! Deal with all the crap you have to deal with at the office and then come home and keep a clean house, keep up with all your laundry, always know what is going on at daycare (or whatever child care you have), never be late with anything, always give 100% to your kid... But don't be anything less than your best at work - you still need to bring home that paycheck - and never let down your Super Mom guard. Because that is what people expect from you, since you are so lucky to have a job that gives you "days off".

If I ever am able to stay home and anyone ever catches me complaining about how I never get a day off, I am giving permission for you to smack me across the face.