Is it Enough?

Recently, I was reminded recently of this Carolyn Hax column that made its way around the interwebs a few years ago.  If you'd like a snapshot of what it's like being home with young children full time, it is a good, quick read.  Go ahead and take a look, I'll wait.

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I've certainly had people ask me, "what do you do all day?"  No one means to be rude, and I never feel like I need to be all high and mighty talking about being home.  Devoting all of my time to staying with my girls is a wonderful, rewarding blessing that I will never stop being grateful to God and my husband for.  But secretly, over time, I have started to let some second guessing seep into my mind.

Am I bringing enough to the table?  Do I do enough for my girls and my husband?  I know I love being home but is me not working at all the right choice for us?

In my old corporate job, we couldn't complete any project without establishing criteria for success at the outset and then taking some metrics at the end.  This enabled us to see if our project accomplished what we set out to do.

But, you can't do that when you don't work at all.  How would I measure success right now?  Would it be the number of times per week:

• I made homecooked meals?
• My children behaved and showed they had good manners?
• I scrubbed our countertops?
• I got both girls to take a nap?
• I saved the family money?
• The girls learned something new?

I don't have the right answer for the best choice for work--full time, part time, something on the side, home full time.  I know every mother out there does the best they can under the circumstances she has, but I sure would like some way to know if I'm doing it right.

Wouldn't we all?

Come to think of it, they think I'm doing ok for now, and that is ultimately what matters.