That’s a photo of me and my mom, Linda. She has been a stay at home mom since, well, as far as I know, forever. I’ve seen her take so much crap for “not having a real job”. Little did I know, she once took her frustrations out artistically! In the late 80s (at this point she only had me and my two older sibs – little did she know two more were to come) she wrote a poem for a local radio contest. She won! Tim Russell (Prairie Home Companion) read it on air and I imagine it was quite an exciting moment for her! I don’t know cause I was probably doing something selfish at the time like peeing myself. Anyway, here is the giggle worthy poem. I hope it inspires those young girls out there who really do dream of being stay-at-home mom’s that, hey, it’s okay! In fact, that’s GREAT! You shouldn’t be looked down on for your dreams!

The Forgotten Small Business

I’m just a housewife,
Like the old saying goes.
I stay home with children,
I iron their clothes.
I clean and I cook,
I launder, I fold.
And yet people say,
No real job do I hold.
I read to my children,
We play games and such,
No wonder they say that
My job’s not worth much.
Without a career,
They look down upon me,
My life has no purpose,
They say so profoundly.
I am the mother,
Who’s home all day long.
My number they know,
If something goes wrong
And they need someone quick
To watch little Lizzy,
“I’ll call the housewife,
I know she’s not busy.”
During the evening,
After I “cooks”,
I sit down with the ledger,
And I do the books
For my husband’s small business,
That isn’t so small,
I add up the numbers,
And balance them all.
My friends who have real jobs,
Think all that I do,
Is shop and do lunch and
Watch soap operas, too.
You don’t really work,
You’re lucky they say,
How nice it would be
To stay home and play.
I guess I don’t work much,
I’ll never be fired,
But I can’t figure out
Why I’m always so tired.

You can read more from Katie Dugan on her blog.