Time to make the money
Every day, one of the first things Sam says to me is "Mommy, do you have to go to work today?"
I actually get a jabbing feeling in my heart when she asks. And because she's still figuring out time (she still does a lot of stuff "last morning"), my explanations about when I'll be off next just don't make sense.
Then, there's her confusion about why I go to work.
She starting asking me about a year ago why I have to go to work. I tried telling her that I like to read stories and that I like getting important information to people.
In case you need me to type these words -- yeah, that didn't work.
So then I explained that I have to go to work to make the money we need to keep our house and buy food and keep our electricity and our TV working.
That worked for what I must say was longer than I expected. When she'd ask me if I had to go to work and I'd say yes, she'd say, "Because you have to make the money, right?"
"Right," I'd say.
Except I discovered this week that explanation wasn't completely making sense to her. She asked me Monday if I had to go to work, and I told her no, I got to be home with her all day. But, I said, I do have to go to work tomorrow.
Sam (with an exasperated sigh): "Oh, Mom. Didn't you make all the money yet?"
Gee, no one told me I was supposed to be making ALL the money we'd ever need by this stage in my life.
As you can imagine, my pathetic attempt at explaining how I have to keep going to work to keep making money to keep paying the bills that keep coming to us fell on duly unimpressed ears.
If you work outside the home, how do you explain to your kids why you go?
