The reality for most families is that both parents have to work full-time.
With kids in school and full-time daycare, you would think that the decreased time at home would result in a cleaner house. Not so. Because we are all barely at home, it would seem that we want to make that time really count by making twice as big as a mess, twice as fast.
After five years of not being able to keep on top of stupid chores like vacuuming and dusting and spending the first half of my weekend cleaning up from the week, I caved and I paid my cousin to clean my house.
It is a feeling like no other, having your house cleaned for you, when you are toiling away.
There was not a small amount of guilt and recrimination in me as I left my house in a complete disaster on the morning when my cousin was coming. The kids and I slept in and had twenty-two minutes to eat breakfast, get dressed, brush teeth and make lunches.
As a result of that mad chaos, I managed to miss my shower, dump dog food all over the kitchen floor, spill milk across the table and weep quietly in the corner.
On a normal morning, I usually manage to tidy the kitchen and put in a load of laundry and at the very least, manage to get through the start of the day without crying.
When I finally got to work, I texted my cousin to warn her about the pandemonium I left behind so she wouldn't be scared away.
Apparently, upon entering my house, she looked around and sighed and said to herself, "Let's get started." And then, angels came down from the heavens to bless her beautiful heart and she cleaned my whole house. There are no words for how I felt upon entering my newly cleaned house, except for maybe one: unburdened.
Working mothers have an expectation that they can do it all and still have time to binge-watch Netflix.
I have stopped pretending that I can do it all. I can barely do some of it.
I am so grateful for housecleaners that I put forth that we have a National Day of Recognition for Housecleaners.
Really, it's the least we can do when they do so much for us. Thank you to everyone who helps.
Thank you one thousand times.
