I never thought I’d stay at home with my children.

Truth be known, I never thought I’d have children.

I always thought that women who stayed at home were, well, lame. I couldn’t understand why someone would want nothing more than to be a mom.  In the movie Juno, Vanessa says “Have you ever know you were just meant to do something? I was meant to be a mother.” Even after being a mom, I couldn’t fathom that quote. Meant to be a mother. Meant to be a mother.

Yesterday, while having a conversation about an upcoming business trip, Jonathan said that his boss has a lot of respect for me. Honestly, I didn’t really believe it. I believe it, because Jonathan said it, but not because I believe it. And I asked myself, “Why? Why don’t I think he would/could respect me?”.

And I realized, that is a loaded question.

Until I became a mom, I didn’t have a lot of respect for SAHMs. I figured I’d juggled college, work, extra curricular activities, minimal sleep and high stress situations, raising kids can’t be that hard. In my mind, SAHMs meant mini vans, soccer practice, cleaning house, and shuttling kids off to school. Then Julia came along. And like so many other things, I realized I was wrong. Being a mom is hard. Being called to die to self is hard. Facing your sins in the face, daily, in order to train someone else is hard. Knowing that you’re the first example of God, of the world, of everything to this one little being, who relies on you fully is hard.

And hard work does deserve respect.

What I do: wiping butts, cleaning up spilt milk, laundry, grocery shopping, doesn’t seem like much. And when paired against, I don’t know, brain surgery or rocket science, it really seems quite easy. But what I really do, training children into God-fearing, people-loving, perhaps even brain surgeon adults is respectful work.

To all you moms out there: Bravo! You are doing a marvelous job and I respect you so much!

To my daughters: My earnest desire is that you might grow up to say “I was meant to be a mom” and know, beyond all doubt, that your job is as important, hard and respectful as any CEO or doctor.