SAHM/Homemakers - What do you do all day?

[Fruem]

Those who choose to be a SAHM/homemaker, who don’t ‘have’ to work, what do you do all day?!

I’m talking the SAHM’s who don’t work from home. Who don’t have to look after the kids all day etc.

If you’ve done cleaning/washing/shopping etc. How do you fill your day?

I'm not a Sahm but I work pt. On my days off in between the minimal housework I do, I go to the gym and run errands or watch tv. DH is home often on his shift pattern so we get to spend time together, go out for lunch, have sex. We've been getting quotes for a new kitchen these last two weeks so it's been fairly busy. I love the summertime when I get to relax in the sun with a book.

I feel sick with envy. Good on ya'll, enjoy it!

"The best time to be an SAHM IMHO is when your DC's have left home."

Yep, I like to peruse the Megabus and Nat Xpress websites to see where I'll go travelling once DD3 is independent.

I’ve just refreshed the thread and I think that faffing is my problem. Lack of structure and organisation leads to massive faffing

If you’ve done cleaning/washing/shopping etc

Yeah, like that ever actual gets finished!

But in breaks from that stuff, I...

Ran a toddler group, sorted crafts and activities for toddler group.
Ran Sunday school, so I prepared for that.
Heard readers at school.
Did stuff for PTA.
Did a few other extra bits for school.

Occasionally caught up on sleep.

I work 2 days a week but adult DS has left home so I have the 3 other days free and the weekend, the time is spent faffing, a bit of shopping, coffees, quite a bit of telly, time goes very quickly as doing not a lot seems to take a lot of time.

I will confess to the odd nap!

stealthpolarbear quite right. Walking with effing toddlers seemed to involve endless drain inspections. I have a PhD, and could write another one on sewerage systems, after f* only knows how many years spent with toddlers. Would swap them for teenagers any day, though. Drainage beats Snapchat any day.

I'm not sure what I class myself as. SAHM mom seems wrong since one child is away at university and the other is at college.

I walk the dog twice which takes around 3 hours total , exercise, shop, keep the house clean, do the washing and ironing, do the gardening when it needs doing, cook from scratch, crochet (usually for the various Woolly Hugs projects).

It's so interesting, my eldest will go to school in September and my dd the September after that and I'm dreading it!

I am always baffled by these questions, is it really that hard to imagine? I do all the stuff I used to do outside of work but at a leisurely pace, with less nagging and my cooking is better.

Trash telly,prepping dinner,playing with the dog.Ds goes nursery 2.5 days a week

I do shitloads of faffing. As little housework as I can get away with, have coffee with friends, shop, read a lot. There's only one rule - TV doesn't go on before 5pm otherwise life would be wall to wall Netflix. Life will change radically when I start my MA.

I have this fantasy that if I was a SAHM my house would be perfect (not only clean, but all the crappy things that need fixing would get done) my body, face and hair would be as perfect as exercise and a good salon could get them, my clothes would be stylish because I could choose them without being whined at, and on top of this I would do creative stuff like writing a book and planning amazing adventures for the weekend.

In reality I suspect it would be more like my maternity leave where I watched Judge Judy and ate biscuits.

I ran the home, had a proper old fashioned housework rota, certain jobs certain days, shopped, cooked, cleaned, finances, decorated, no internet in those days so had to go to the shops, bank etc Lay on the sofa, read books, went for lunch and coffee. I loved it, all this done while kids were in school.

I loved breakfast at the table with the kids before school and tea time catching up where they had all done ‘nothing’ at school all day. By the time my DH came in their homework was mostly done, the housework was done and dinner was ready.

I feel privileged to have been able to do that, it all changed when I went back to work when they were older, life became hectic.

I have this fantasy that if I was a SAHM my house would be perfect (not only clean, but all the crappy things that need fixing would get done) my body, face and hair would be as perfect as exercise and a good salon could get them, my clothes would be stylish because I could choose them without being whined at, and on top of this I would do creative stuff like writing a book and planning amazing adventures for the weekend

I thought the same. I thought my home would be immaculate and I'd go to the gym loads so would have a body like an instagram fitness model...

What a fool I was!

Housework, gardening, general household admin (bills, elderly cat has monthly vet check up, etc). DC2 has a monthly physio appointment, and occasional outpatient appointments. Swimming is the best exercise for her, so I aim to take the kids swimming twice a week. Cooking from scratch. Some voluntary work. Helping out friend with health issues. Helping out relative with health issues. Lovely coffees or lunches with friends. Fortnightly book group. I find that people tend to expect stuff from SAHMs in terms of helping out with school stuff, or Brownie stuff, or Cub stuff. I'm on the PTA and the Brownie / parent group, so occasional organising and helping with events. DH is away from home quite a bit and occasionally there's a quick turn around to unpack, get everything washed and repack. Errands for DH - picking up Euros, or dress hire, or posting stuff. I've redecorated a couple of rooms single handedly. It's more varied and interesting than when I was working, and I get to mix with a wider variety of people.

I miss my SAHM Years!
They were the best ever.
I only had one year really with no dc at home, although I was pg for a lot of that.
And then the last year of the youngest being at preschool meant I had half days free again.
I:
Ignored the housework
Went for runs/walks in the beautiful countryside
Visited my grandad and did his shopping/housework
Read lots and lots of books
Spent a lot of time at the gym/spa
Volunteered a bit of time at school
Went for lunch with friends
Cooked fancy/faffy dinners
Kept on top of the washing (never ironed a thing)
Basically balanced keeping the house in okay condition with enjoying myself!

Glitterati you have a cleaner 9-1pm 3 days a week? 12 hours a week? Just curious.

Today was;
5k Run
SChool run
Walk dogs
Finally shower
Half hour of housework
2 hr lunch with friends 20 mins drive away
Pop to shop
School run
Dog walk with dd2
Nag ds2 to do homework
Cook faffy vegan Buddha bowl dinner
Collect dd1 from station
Tidy up
Watch tv without DH
Bed

Sleep till lunchtime
Watch Judge Judy
Make dinner
Drink wine

feed cows, feed calves, shovel shite

I do a lot of cleaning, washing, ironing, school runs, kids clubs, haircuts, parties, meal planning, batch cooking, food shopping.
Once a week I have coffee with a friend.
I'm planning decorating which I will do myself, ebay stuff, having a huge clear out at the moment so lots of charity shop drops.

I do work 30 hours a week but that's evenings and 2 days. I have 5 days free.