A solitary life

In the world of "mom," especially in the Internet world, I hear a lot of talk about how isolating it can be to stay at home full-time with your kids. I imagine it's true. It would be really hard to go without adult conversation for the whole day, and I imagine it can sometimes get monotonous, especially with a baby. (Just so everyone knows, I wasn't angry in the above photo. I was just trying to match Anne Marie's mood. :))

But, sitting at lunch the other day with my co-workers, I realized how solitary it can be to be a working mother as well. I work in a profession that is definitely not family-friendly. The hours are long and unpredictable, and the pay is abismal. Few of my co-workers have children. The ones who do have never been real friends because, up until now, we had nothing in common.

So I was sitting there, enjoying my sandwich, when I realized I had very little left to say to these people who have been co-workers and friends forever. I haven't been out to the bars, listened to live music, or even to a movie for a very long time. We can still talk politics and work, but not much else. They don't really want to hear how Anne Marie can't get enough of the song, "Mr. Golden Sun," and I have nothing to say about how much fun I had the evening before.

For the stay-at-home types, there are mother's groups, play times, etc. For the full-time working mother, there simply isn't time to think about it. For those of us who work 25 hours a week, however, we can sometimes feel a bit out of place in both worlds.

On the other hand, I think I'm incredibly lucky that Matt and I are able to co-parent, even though sometimes it's tough to come home from a whole day of work and look after your baby by yourself while your spouse heads to the office. Behold, the toll it takes on Matt and Anne Marie: