Queen of the Castle

I just started a book called Queen of the Castle. Imagine that, I have time to read a book!! In all honesty though, it's a book of Devotionals: just a couple of pages each day. I sip (okay, I chug!!) my morning cup of coffee and read a couple of pages from this book every morning. I do this while "I" lays on the couch slowing sipping his bottle of warm milk, running his blanket through his fingers, and gazing lovingly at the television watching Mickey Mouse sing about  Mousekatools, hot diggety dogs, and other things :) 

Anyway, back to the book... after I had "I" and decided to become a stay-at-home mom, I had, what I would call, an identity crisis. I had been a so-called career woman for over 10 years and transitioning to motherhood was definitely not a walk in the park for me. After a lot of tears, frustration, guilt, anger, and prayer I just started to embrace and appreciate my role as a stay-at-home mom over these past few months. Society tells us that being a stay-at-home mom is a waste of a woman's time and talents. It tells us that staying-at-home appears to involve little to no work at all. But believe me, it's A LOT of work!! Those of us who stay-at-home every day have a thorough appreciation for the task. We know there's always something more to be done. But for those who have never attempted it, staying-at-home appears to involve no work at all. The job, however, involves indescribable amounts of physical, mental, and emotional energy. It is an incredibly demanding profession: twenty-four hour days, no sick leave, and eternal consequences. Sadly, in our culture, being a stay-at-home mom is not perceived as a valued position. 

"Queen of the Castle" really hits home with me. The book is helping me realize that I'm not the only woman who goes through an "identity crisis" after becoming a mom. And, that my job as a mother and a wife truly is the most important one there is!! 

"You may wonder sometimes if patching one more pair of worn-out knees or making one more peanut-butter-and-jelly brown bag lunch really matters. Let me tell you: it matters. If you are home raising your family, you are doing important work. By loving the family that God has given you, you are making an impact not only on this generation but also on the one after and the one after that. As a homemaker, your work has eternal consequences. That's something no paid position can touch." - Lynn Bowen Walker 

"Homemaking is much more than a job - it is a profession: a profession which is venerable, honorable, and of the highest benefit to mankind. We must not forget this." - Mary LaGrand Bouma, The Creative Homemaker

"Let's be wise women who commit ourselves to building our homes. Then we can watch in wonder as God turns them into the strongest, sturdiest dwellings imaginable." - Lynn Bowen Walker