Dr. Laura:
When I first started listening to you four years ago, I laughed out loud when you said all mothers should stay home to raise their children. I heard your facts and other data on the matter but still considered it "old school" thinking. However, I continued to listen to you, and the more I listened, the more calls I heard from mothers struggling to balance their family, homes, and careers.
My generation was taught that we have no worth without careers and college degrees, but your advice kept nagging at me. I knew I wanted children and I knew that meant I wanted to be the one raising them to be good people. Deep down, I knew you were right.
Last fall, I found out I was pregnant. Before our marriage, my husband and I agreed that I would be a stay-at-home mom. So I told my supervisor that I would not be returning to my teaching job this year. My daughter is now three months old, and being her mom is the best career I chose. I went to school two weeks ago to clean out my classroom. I was there all day and it took me an hour to get home. That's when I realized that this is what my life would be like if I still worked. I would only see my daughter two hours a day! I would have missed her first smile, her first babble, and all those other "firsts." You don't get these moments back, and the daycare down the street doesn't deserve them! So thank you from the bottom of my stubborn pig-headed heart for teaching me how precious my time with my baby is. Now, I wouldn't give it up for anything!
Kelsey
