Work-At-Home Mom-me: Part 3 - What I Love About Being a WAHM

This is the third in a series of four posts about my experience as a work-at-home mom. The first two posts talked about how I started working from home, while the second described the challenges I faced as a WAHM. This third post will tell you about the things I love about my life as a WAHM.

Even with all the challenges of being a WAHM, I'd say based on my experience, overcoming these challenges is worth it because it comes with these benefits:

1. No external expenses - Working in an office may mean big bucks for a lot of women, but it also means big expenses. This can include transportation, food, clothing/make-up, plus occasional miscellaneous expenses (lunch out or gimmicks with colleagues, donations to birthday funds, etc.) that when added up, can take a serious chunk out of your paycheck. As a WAHM mom, I walk to my desk, eat the lunch that I would have cooked anyway if I had been working outside the house, and wear simple house clothes. The money I earn goes to where it should: savings for my family.

2. Flexi-time -  I mentioned scheduling as a challenge that comes with being a WAHM, but it also has a flip side. I may not have definite work hours, but at the end of the day, so long as I get the job done, no one cares what time I start or what time I end. Depending on how much work I'm assigned, I can schedule times to do the groceries, take care of household related tasks, take my son to doctor's appointments, or have some leisure time of my own to meet up with friends or do some shopping with my sisters.

3. Productivity-based earnings - During my stints as an employee, I've discovered that working on a fixed salary tends to be more advantageous for lazy, unproductive people. But for people like me who tend to maximize their day and get as much work done as possible, it's not so great. We don't get paid more if we're more efficient. But with the job I have right now, if I schedule myself properly and finish up a lot of work, I earn more. While this takes more responsibility on my part when it comes to scheduling my non-work-related activities, I like the discipline that it requires to ensure that I'm able to do everything that I'm supposed to, from being a mom, a wife, a homemaker and an employee.

4. Less obstacles to breastfeeding  -  Moms are encouraged to exclusively breastfeed their babies, but I know that it's not that simple for a lot of mommies, especially those who need to sustain an outside job, which can make prolonged breastfeeding a challenge. I am very grateful that being a WAHM makes it a lot more manageable for me to make sure that Little C gets the best nutrition possible, for as long as he wants it.

5. Quality time with my family - I am writing this post after a nice, refreshing dip in the clubhouse pool with my little boy, and I'd have to say, this is the best perk of being a WAHM. I am always around.

I was there for all the milestones and firsts in J's life. I was there the first time he rolled over, sat, crawled, pulled himself up, and took his first steps. I was there the first time he said "mama", signed "thank you" and did all the wonderful things that babies do, and I will be there when Little C will do them all for the first time.

When J and Little C need me, I am always just in the next room to kiss a boo-boo, referee a fight, applaud a new achievement or to simply give them their hugs and kisses. If, god forbid, they should get sick, I am there to take care of them the whole day. When J was hospitalized a few months back for pneumonia, my entire focus was on my son's recovery and I was especially glad that I didn't have to worry about what was going on at work.

And apart from being a mom, I also a wife, and working from home allows me to give time and attention to the biggest of the three men in my life. I am there to make breakfast for my husband and send him off to another day at the office and I am here to prepare dinner for him when he comes home at night. We start and end our days together and talk about everything in between.

So what's a typical day like for this WAHM? Watch out for the last post in this series. Happy day to you all!