How do you want to retire?
I’m a WFH-SAHM, and I don’t know if I can retire. I wake up super early to ensure kids are set to leave from home to school on time, pack lunch, and keep shoes and bottles out so nothing is missed. Dust and make beds, prep breakfast, ensure there are ingredients to prepare lunch and dinner, and then sit to work on my blog or my art.
I worked for a few years before I decided to become a SAHM. I did the late-night parties, met friends for dinner and drinks, catch a second-show movie in a multiplex far away from home. The whole nine yards. Sleeping late, waking early to get to the office on time, and working through the day. Rinse and repeat. I always felt like I had achieved a lot because I partied late and woke up early to ensure I was at my desk on time and clocked in the required number of hours to be a productive member of my team. And then I got pregnant. I had to put a lot of effort into getting here, so when I did, I had no intention to jeopardize the situation. I quit to be a SAHM. Our lifestyles changed. There were fewer late nights. Fewer multiplex movies. And a lot fewer meet-ups. The kid was born. The initial years of waking up early to feed a hungry infant were some of the toughest years I experienced. I had quit full-time work to be a SAHM, so I did the first nine months of lounging in track pants and tee shirts all the time, sleeping post lunch, eating, and sometimes even snacking at random times and napping at random times. And I remember being so disorganized and uncoordinated when the kid was born. Getting back into a routine took even more effort. But once I got that routine down, I didn’t give it up for anything. I have managed to increase the hours of productivity in a day. And although I remain a WFH-SAHM, I always feel like I have achieved a lot more with the change in mindset.
We’ve managed a few trips with the kids filled with wonder and the joy of discovery, waking up early and getting ready on time to be on that train to your next destination. Visiting the museum or the amusement parks and doing lots of fun things throughout the day, eating out, sometimes eating late, propping ourselves on sugary drinks and salty snacks. We’ve marked the end of each day with sore aching muscles balanced by an extremely satisfied sense of achievement. And then we have returned to reality, the everyday life of a nuclear family. Early mornings, chaotic days, early dinners, and on occasion an early night. The biggest learnings so far have been that we only require 8 hours of sleep, early mornings are good because they let you achieve a lot more in the regular official working hours of 9 am – 5 pm, and the best way to keep at this pace is to ensure you have a fixed bedtime.
Now that I am used to waking up early, I have no desire to lounge in or sit around and waste time. I have 24 hours today- I am happy to sleep for 8 of them at night. I have no requirement to spend more time lounging around, as a one-off, maybe a day on vacation I don’t mind sleeping in, but usually, I prefer my early mornings and early nights. I love that extra bit of silent time I get at the start of every day, just to sit and relish every sip of my first cup and either go through what I need to accomplish today or just enjoy watching a sleepy world slowly waking up. I prefer to spend the early morning hours finishing the mundane aspects of life, things that you have to do every day, like cooking, cleaning, and laundry. After that I would love to have the day to myself, to step out to shop or sit down to finish something I started earlier either writing or in my art.
To be honest, I don’t know if I can retire in the traditional sense of that word and everything that it symbolizes. But, I assume that once the kids are out and about in the world and I don’t have to spend those extra hours in the morning running after them, I will get a couple of extra hours in the day. When I do get those hours, I would like to take the time to do more of what I enjoy doing, I don’t want to stop writing. I don’t want to stop my art. And I don’t want to stop the travels. I would like to spend a few more hours with my family, just talking collecting more stories to write, creating more memories to relive, and getting inspired by the everyday mundane routines to include in my art.
Retired. Young at heart. Slightly older in other places.
Author Unknown
Just a little more 