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Location: Northern California

Monday, December 04, 2006

 

If a mommyblogger falls in the forest

I'm having a one-woman pity party over here. I think it might somehow be tied to the stress of the holiday season (shopping and decorating and cooking, oh my!) or to the fact it's dark by 5:30 or to the conversation I had the other night.

The conversation itself wasn't that heavy or memorable. I was talking to a woman whom I hadn't seen in years, since before I got married and had kids. And became a housewife. I found myself struggling to explain what my life was like. Her questions weren't particularly probing or judgemental, but they all led to the same general query: "What do you do all day?"

Trying to explain to somebody without kids what I do all day left me feeling odd. She wondered about my social life; did I hang out with other moms and kids? Perhaps she found it difficult to imagine having a social life once procreation has occurred. Telling her I was the newsletter editor for my mothers club sounded lame even to me. She was surprised at the fact our club has hundreds of members. Maybe she couldn't imagine that many women with children existed?

I didn't even bother trying to explain to her about mommyblogging. I just didn't have it in me.

I'm annoyed that I'm letting the conversation I had with this woman bother me. I wish that I had told her how great it is to have a morning like the one I'm having right now. It's 10:00 and I'm listening to NPR and writing. I am about to make a second cup of coffee, a mocha this time. My two kids--one of whom looks like my husband and one of whom kind of looks like me--are over at the kitchen table playing with crayons and Play-Doh. To my left is The Art of Mexican Cooking. I'm going to make torta de calabacita (zucchini torte) for dinner. I have absolutely nothing on the calendar; the day is mine to make of it what I will.

Maybe I didn't tell her all of this because it's just not in me to brag. But it's also true that I don't often enough consider how fortunate I am to live the life I'm living. Sure, some days are hard, right now my left thumb smells just a little bit like diaper, and the pay isn't all that great, but take a look at my boss:

The sweetness
I work hard for this honey.


For her sake, I hope that woman one day gets to do what I do all day.

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