Homeschool mamas wear a lot of hats. That means that every day has a lot of jobs. Every day, we are a child of God, a wife, a mother, and a daughter before taking on anything else. In any one day, before we count any other employment, we are teacher, maid, chauffeur, chef, laundress, nurse, nanny, counselor, coach, and so many more things. Throw in an outside job, and it’s a lot to wrap the mind around.
When my kids were little, I’d choose what to accomplish carefully. If it was a school day (teacher), and I had to drive someone to a violin lesson (chauffeur), I could also manage the cooking OR the laundry… but I couldn’t be both a chef and a laundress if I were already a teacher, a chauffeur, and a mother. There weren’t enough hours in the day. If it was a school day and I needed to buy groceries, I should grab a roasted chicken and a bag of salad at Costco to go with rice for dinner because I couldn’t be a shopper, a teacher, a mother, and a chef in the same day without things feeling a little out of control.
Once my kids grew learned more about household skills, I could stop doing some of those jobs regularly. I’m still the chief chef, but other people will clean up after the meal if I cook. Now, I have all teenagers, so I don’t do nearly as much laundry as I used to because they do their own. I don’t cook as many meals as I used to because they feed themselves breakfast and lunch. I need to provide the groceries. But I also need to be a better student, a better manager, and a better listener because those young men need help with higher math, help to stay on task, and help to process the world. They need to be prayed for, appreciated, and called to maturity.
But it remains true that I enjoy the day better if I only wear three hats during one day. I’m finishing a long season in which I’ve worn four or five hats a day out of necessity, and I’m exhausted and cranky. That’s not good for me, my husband, or any of our man-cubs. I’ve put some of those hats away for the summer or for longer. We will look for a better balance in a month or so when I need to take some of them back out.
