The Maternity Leave Thing...

For most of my adult life I have lived in an urban area.  Why is this important?  Well, I feel like the range of mothers in urban areas is absolutely ridiculous.  In my experience working in schools, as a nanny, and a private tutor I have encountered thousands of mothers and they make up what I call the mother triangle.

At each point of the triangle I place a different type of mother.

There are the "I make babies and pay other people to take care of them" mothers.
There are the "I make babies and stay home with them and don't let anyone else touch them" mothers.
There are the "I make babies so I can get more Welfare money" mothers

And in the middle there are the "I make babies and I wish I could stay home and take care of them, but I have to make a living" mothers.

Can you guess where I'm going to fall?

I have seen so many mothers have babies, only to go back to their high paying downtown jobs just weeks (or in some cases days) after giving birth.  They don't seem to have any problem handing their children off to a (usually foreign) nanny for 15+ hours a day.  They make babies because they are cute and look nice at church and it is just what people with money do.

Then there are the moms who stop living their own lives and become so overly consumed with their babies.  They stop working and don't trust anyone to watch their children.  The children are involved only in activities they can supervise.

I don't even want to get into the welfare moms...

Although a small part of me wishes I could stay home for the next 5-7 years to be with my baby, I know in the long run, my child will learn so much being at a daycare.   I also want my child to see how passionate Mommy is about her job.  My career is very important to me.  I have worked so hard to get where I am, and I want my child to see how important being a successful career woman is to me.

I have also encountered many children who do not attend daycare.  All I have to say about those kids is that they have almost no (appropriate) social skills, they do not become good students, and they are all-around brats!

I guess what I want for my child is a balance.  The best way I can offer that is to continue working so I can help maintain a comfortable life for our family as well as find the best daycare provider possible for him.

Hopefully my choice to go back to work after a 5 month leave works out for the best.  Only time will tell. . .