9 Reasons to Appreciate Stay At Home Mums

There seems to be such a lot being said of SAHMs in our society, a lot of it pretty negative. All this 'talk' prompted me to think about the benefits SAHMs actually bring to society. If it's not accusations of SAHMs allowing their brains to become as soft as "over cooked spaghetti" (thanks Lowri Turner), it's the assumptions they are all addicted to Day time TV ( Jeremy Kyle seems to feature quite frequently) and coffee mornings.

          Source: www.popsugar.com

In a small effort to redress the balance, here are 9 reasons to appreciate a SAHM

1. They call the fire brigade on an empty house letting off smoke (a true story - I honestly did call the fire brigade, turns out is was a real fire, brought under control just in time)

2. On the return journey from the school run (the journey to school is far too stressful to stop for anything), they actually read notices of missing pets taking note to look out for them. 

              Source: Pinterest.com

3. They drop in on an elderly person providing much needed company.

4. They organise school Christmas fairs and other fund raising initiatives, raising money to improve school facilities and therefore improving the community's schools.

              Source: Pinterest.com

5. They are the class reps who remind you about own clothes day or that cake sale.

6. They are regular users of local businesses. SAHM's are more likely to take a trip to the local butchers, then the bakery next door and that old clichè - the coffee shop. All this before the Tesco delivery arrives and just in time to turn the slow cooker off

7. SAHMs help make neighbourhoods communities. Since joining the ranks of  school goers, our family's world has really opened up in an unexpected way. Meeting other local families with similar interests means we are exploring our local facilities more. We are looking out for each other's families and really want to make our community a great place to live.

8. They are the unofficial neighbourhood watch - because they are home at "odd" times, SAHMs will soon spot undesirable situations in and around the community and report or question things which may otherwise go unnoticed.

9. They are neighbourly - from taking in deliveries during the day to moving your wheelly bins off the public pavement or walk way - SAHMs look out for their neighbours.

So you see it's not just coffee mornings and Jeremy Kyle for company. SAHMs are not just good for their own children and their immediate families, they do infact have a wider impact on their community, and dare I say, society.

To Luxuriate – A mother’s Poem

Today I will luxuriate in a softly lit room accompanied by my thoughts

Today I will luxuriate as someone else takes the strain of vacuum cleaning under a sofa. The very sofa on which I must luxuriate

Today I will luxuriate in the company of Grazia magazine. Today I will read it back to back

Today I will luxuriate in the temporary absence of my darling children.

Today I will luxuriate in the cleanliness of my home, a cleanliness enhanced by soft playing classical music 

Today I will luxuriate, if but for one hour, I will luxuriate

#WickedWednesday

I've just discovered #wickedwedneday thanks to @brummymummyof2, a mum blogger I'm following on twitter. 

If I understand the #wickedwednesday rules correctly, I'm supposed to post a brief blog entry accompanied by a picture of some humorous or interesting recent occurrence in my capacity as parent. So here goes....

That my friends, was Wednesday's lunch. I have a feeling Pink did not approve...?

Are We All Perfect Parents?

I recently read a great article on the parenting website Parentdish.co.uk. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about various things parents feel guilty about and took comfort in many of the "not guilty" verdicts determined by the author Georgia James. The article, titled "Drop the Parental guilt (you're doing a brilliant job)", got me thinking about whether we are all "doing a brilliant job" as parents. As pleased as I was to be relieved of some parental guilt, I grew afraid that we can't all be "doing a brilliant job". 

            Source:Parentdish.co.uk

With stories in the news about British children having milk teeth extracted due to irreversible damage and rot, and others starting school in nappies or barely able to recognise numbers or letters, we can't all be "doing a brilliant job", can we?,

              Source: bbc.co.uk

Most parents try their utmost to provide the very best for their offspring, whilst dealing with the constraits of time, money and resources. But there are those few in our society who for a variety of reasons, just aren't trying. The parents who don't know any better or those who do know but can't be bothered. 

The fact is parenting is a tough gig, which is rarely without guilt. Those who are trying are rightly aspiring to be better parents and raise well adjusted children who we steer towards independence, happiness and the right attitude. We arm them with the advantages of education, culture, social skills and seek to refine their skills and talents.

Conversely there are parents, living in a "first world" country who simply aren't aspiring, trying or even taking advantage of so many tools and resources at their disposal. I have met parents who have never been to a (free) antenatal class because they don't see the point in having a medical professional tell them they'll have a baby in a few months. I also know of those whose children are consistently bribed or rewarded with sweet treats despite the parents knowledge that sweets are bad for teeth and general health. I know too of those who allow their children everything they ask for (because it's easier) yet can never satisfy them.

           Source:www.slate.com

I do spare a thought for those who simply don't know that feeding their child ready meals on a regular basis is not good for their health; those who don't have time to read to their child every night; and those living on a budget so tight that any suggestion that they save some money for some cultural experience next summer would be met with laughter. Not because they don't value a cultural experience for their family, but because it's simply unrealistic for them to set aside money for future use when there are so many demands on their money right now.

Ofcourse the majority of parents are "doing a brilliant job". That's why Britain  continues to produce world class scientists, artists and sportsmen and women. But, sadly not all parents are striving for the very best they could provide. And that parenting style, which we lable "bad parenting" or "poor parenting" can only lead to one conclusion: no, we are not all "doing a brilliant job", but so many of us are trying, sacrificing, sweating and stressing for one of the most worthy of causes - our children.