I made the decision to be a Stay At Home Mom (SAHM) and a conscious one indeed, for an entire week. To think I even canned any holiday plans (but really, air ticket prices just did not justify a trip)...and so with bated breaths I begun my stint as a SAHM.










Stop counting the minutes








Try as I did during the week not to be obsessed with keeping to schedules. I have a 14.5 month old on my hands who probably is so curious about the world and I wish at times he were still that 3 month old who'd take naps as I wish and not move like a hurricane.






To the point, he actually skipped his morning nap and fell asleep in class. I felt bad for him when we pushed the envelopes and had to deal with a super cranky and tired toddler.












Doing things together






I took more videos, snapped more pictures....and just watched him.






I am guilty of always carrying my handphone or camera wherever I go and to the extent that I lose out watching those moments live. Sounds ridiculous but the struggle of freezing these memories and witnessing them live without capturing, is real. So real that I question...which is really more important.













Pull the grass? Touch the ground? Be the kid. That one week taught me not to be so uptight, over the dirt, the sweat and almost everything else that makes me want to bubblewrap him. I let him sit on the porch, pull the grass in our garden and then those gate grilles...baby steps? And then I realized how all these tiny things made him happy - yet none of them cost a cent.














Play, play....PLAY










Children's biennale, indoor playgrounds (a ton of them!), library and even the public playground! I used to be very anal about public playgrounds and really if I allowed the OCD in me to intervene, I could be lunatic enough to sanitize the playground.













So we covered all of that - the way his eyes sparkled at the exhibits, went on for 2 whole hours playing and climbing all over and shaking his booty during the programme for todds at the library and even getting all excited being at the public playground. I wish I videoed all of that down but I realized how happy he became just playing.

I ended up making toys out of the things we had at home, including making a choo choo train out of the toy box on wheels and a cushion. Surprise is me when he ranks this as favouritest toy in the house, considering how he hardly loves any toys longer than a day?












There is still a huge admiration for moms who chose to be stay home mums and let us not forget that choosing to work is also a choice. Driven by choice and circumstances, there is no right or wrong decision, only what's best for our sanity and children.











My emotional bank account was definitely brimming by end the week, weary and somewhat frazzled from dealing with him 8 full days. I was ready to head back to work.