What SAHDs Do All Day

[Firiel]

Did anyone mention writing letters to your future husband?

UGH! I did that at sixteen. I wrote a tearful letter apologizing for having a big crush on a guy in high school. :cray-cray:

Thank goodness I grew out of that on my own.

[EmmieJ]

I agree that it is unfair to compare my life at 22 (having been raised by parents who believed in higher education for all their children, believed in raising us to be independent and unafraid of entering the world, and who also provided a strong safety net which allowed us to jump out of the nest, and then back in again if need be) to this young lady Emily, who has been raised quite differently. I hope she is happy with her life, although as her mother describes it, it sounds boring to me.

She has one job that provides some income - cleaning house once a month for an elderly couple. I'm guessing she earns no more than $100 per month for that. She teaches (her siblings?) preschool 2-3 mornings per week, unpaid. She gives violin lessons to several students (I can't tell if this is unpaid or paid). And she turned down a paying job at a local music store (she apparently loves music, creating music, etc) so she could be on call as a babysitter. (That made me feel sad for her. I think she might have liked to have taken that job, but possibly felt it would be selfish to do so.)

On the other hand, it doesn't sound as if her mom works her to death, which is good. She makes dinner once a week, does the breakfast dishes, and "deep-cleans" the living room (probably once a week). Another household job is helping with their food bank donations.

Other than that, she apparently has a small garden, composes songs and is working on a musical, makes costumes for church plays, reads the Bible a lot, doesn't do much on-line, cuts family member's hair, and hosts tea parties (how often would a person host a tea party?)

I moved out of the house when I was 19, got a job, an apartment, and was 100% self-supporting. By 22, I decided to go to college so I could have better job opportunities. I was enrolled full time in college, had a part-time job at a racquet ball club, hung out with my friends most nights, went dancing on the week-ends, and generally had a good time while still hitting the books. It's not for everyone, but I enjoyed it very much. I went to college at a time where I could work full time during the summer and save, and work part time during the school year, and have enough money to pay for tuition, books, and my housing costs. Sadly, I don't know that a student could do that today with how much college costs have skyrocketed.

I hope this young girl is happy with her limited opportunities and experiences. I know that I would have chafed under these same circumstances.