Becoming a Stay At Home Mom

Now that Emma is finally here, I have been getting questions on whether I will be staying home or going back to work. For as long as I can remember, if it was financially possible, I always wanted to become a stay at home mom at least until my child is ready to go to pre-school. This was important to me because my mom was always a working mom. I never felt I had a close bond with her as a child. Looking back to when I was a toddler, I hardly remember any memories spent with her and this always made me sad.

I want Emma to have many memories of me spending time with her and I want to build a close relationship with her starting from when she is young, so she wont be afraid to talk to me about anything as she is growing up. I think that was one of the main problems my mom and I developed as I was growing up. Communication. Our relationship is better today, but I think we started too late. It was only when I started battling with depression starting in my early college years, my mom and I really became close. Before that I never felt I could open up to her about my problems because I didn't think she would understand. My mom still tells me today how much she regrets not being able to take care of me more when I was younger. She was in a situation where she had to work with my dad in order to support my brother and I so I definitely don't blame her. I am so thankful for her, but it would have been nice to have her in my life more when I was a kid.

Right now we are fortunate to be able to make ends meet with just my husband working, so we have decided for me to stay home to take care of Emma for at least the first few years of her life. He is currently working with his father who owns a hat manufacture, so our future plan is for me to join them once Im ready to work again.

For someone who has been working nonstop since college, staying at home has been great so far. But I might feel this way because I was never really a career driven women. Many of my old colleagues told me that as much as I will love my baby, I would really get sick of staying home and want to go back to work by the 8th month or so. I guess right now its too early to tell, but so far I really love it. I love knowing I will be home with my baby as she grows.

-Jess