Personally, I think I would have made a good housewife (or stay-at-home mom if I had kids) even in today's world. I like keeping a house in order and cooking and baking. I know that's like a slap in the face to feminism but if you enjoy those things while at the same time doing your own thing then why the heck not? An author I follow wrote a book in which the heroine at the end of the story quit her job as a high-powered investigative journalist to stay at home and bake pies (the author is Pamela Clare and the book was 'Breaking Point'- great book by the way and an awesome part of her I-Team series). The thing was the heroine was a serious burnout and had more than earned the down-time to get on with her new life. Feminism to my way of thinking is about choices and if a woman chooses to stay-at-home and not have some high-powered career then more power to her. This mommy-wars (mommy bloggers like to wage war over shit like this over the internet) are complete and utter bullshit.
My mother was a stay-at-home back in the 1970's but she went back to work when I was three years old so I don't really remember too much of that time when she didn't work. One time I asked her why she hadn't gone to college and pursued a career path and she told me she didn't want time away from her family. She made a choice to work that was mostly financial though she also said she was starting to grow bored with the stay-at-home bit. And yes I found out she did take some shit for not going on the career path. But my mother had very clear priorities in life and I had enormous respect for her because of how she stood firm in her choices. I think she would have enjoyed staying at home more if she had been able to pursue activities/hobbies she loved like photography and gardening but she didn't have a lot of self-confidence so she never got real serious about photography for example even though she had the eye and the talent for it (she took a course at a local community college once and her pictures were awesome- especially the ones she took in black-and-white). I inherited her shyness and self-confidence issues though I like to think I can do more with my own life as I can see my issues and know that I can overcome them in small baby steps.
I don't have a need to work outside the home though I do right now to earn a living. For me, to work from home and indulge my Suzy Homemaker side would be a personal choice. And if anyone didn't like my choices then no baked goodies for them.
The thing is, if I had done the stay-at-home-housewife-and-mom thing I would like to think I would have been a bit non-traditional. I would have worn rockstar and geeky t-shirts, listening to rock or jazz in the car with my kids, watched geeky tv and introduced them to classic movies, and taught them to question authority and not to blindly follow anyone or anything.
But now I think it'll just be me and the pets in a little cottage or condo of our own someday.
My so-not-traditional recipe book: I was looking for a three-ring binder to put my recipe print-outs in and this was all I could find. Kind of fitting though. :)
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