Homemaking with Faith

Like many other mothers often do at times, lately I have been feeling very overwhelmed. It seems that I am doing the same thing, over and over. As soon as I clean the floor, more crumbs are dropped. Each load of laundry I do leaves me with two loads of dirty clothes. And so on. Have you ever felt like this?
It can be so easy in the day-today of homemaking to lose sight of the finish line, the goal- the why of why we do this work at all. It seems I'm not the only one feeling this way at this time- and I was blessed by a post at Passionate Homemaking on the purpose of the home recently. It has reminded me to keep sight of what is really important: that I give my all to my work. For this is my work, the work I chose, the work I have been lucky enough to be able to choose. So many cannot stay home, cannot spend their time with their children. So many do not have the option to spend hours- making real food from scratch or growing food in their garden.
Last week, in class, after mentioning I had two young children, another student asked me if I worked. And I fell into the trap- I said yes, I work part time in my mother's business. Is this true? Well, yes, though in this economy I don't really work much anymore and I did fully admit this! But what I should have said is the real truth- Yes, I do work. I work raising my children, cooking from-scratch meals 3 or more times a day, cleaning, gardening, and so on. Why do we say that daycare workers, babysitters, teachers have "real jobs" but mothers don't? I do not believe it is easier to spend all your attention on your own 2, 3, or 8 + children than it is to divide it among 20 or 30 of other's children. So why do I degrade my chosen work? A writer explains her feelings in a post about living our life unapologetically. This writer is a single lady, choosing to live at home until marriage- but the words apply to many of us. We do not need to negate the work we do at home. Mothering, and homemaking, is a real job.
So where does this leave me with housework? With the less- pleasant minutiae of raising kids: diapers, runny noses, sticky fingers? I am left with a renewed enthusiasm for my duties. I chose to stay home to make the best home I could for my kids, and to give them the best upbringing I could. This time will be gone too soon, and my babies will be grown. I want to enjoy this time while I can. And for the house, it has always been mine to make into a home. A home for my family; where they can seek refuge from the world. And that is what I will keep in my mind while I vacuum the crumbs and fold the tiny little shirts.
I am happy to share this at Homemaker Mondays  Works for Me Wednesday and Finer Things Friday.