From Working 9-5 To Raising Kids At Home – The Ups, Downs, Hobbies and Heartbreaks of One Dad’s New Life
Life In and Around The House
Around The House
The Wife & Kids…
Chores…
Getting Off The Day to Day Hamster Wheel With New Hobbies
Calisthenics…
BlackSmithing…
Running…
How Did I End Up Here?
Well, it wasn’t exactly what I had planned. I’ve been many things, Electrician, Taekwondo Instructor, Small Business Owner to name a few. But kids change everything. The reality is that my wife has a very good job that is not just stable but also pays well, and, childcare is expensive. We talked about it a lot and came to the conclusion that me working just didn’t make sense both financially and for the kids well being. They are only going to be kids once and we felt it was important we be involved more than we could be if we both worked full time.
The decision to be a stay at home dad wasn’t easy, but it made sense for us to put the kids first.
My new job: Full Time HouseHusband
Since taking on this new role I’ve discovered many things about myself and also how much work it is raising kids and keeping a home running!
To name a few:
- Cleaning is a major part of everyday with a 3 year old, 7 year old and a wife working from home.
- Meals are a never ending task with picky eaters that never seem to stop eating till a dinner plate is in front of them.
- Dealing with the feelings of not being the breadwinner and turning the traditional marriage roles upside down.
Now that I’ve had a few months to settle in one thing I also uncovered is how repetitive this job can be day to day. Hobbies, I found, are a must but finding time to fit them in is a real challenge. Blacksmithing is something I love but the best time to do that is when the kids aren’t around, hot metal and 3 year olds is a bad mix, and after they go to sleep is not the ideal time to be loudly banging metal on an anvil. Running has become my new savior and something I never thought I could enjoy. The most running I’ve ever done was when I had to run a few miles as part of my black belt testing, and then i felt like it couldn’t be over soon enough! However I found Couch to 5K and decided to give it a try since it’s an activity I can do alone (YAY!) early in the morning before the kids wake up. The best part is just having the time to do something without interruption and the exercise keeps me sane.. mostly.
Also I needed a place for my creative side to get a workout and really focused on designing t-shirts and listing them primarily on Amazon since taking on the House Husband role. As well, I’ve also started writing. Not just this blog but I have book I wrote about Merch by Amazon.I plan to talk about all these things, and whatever catches my interest, here and share my journey with anyone who cares to read it.
Latest musings I’ve had about my journey