I find the entire discussion of whether Sarah Palin can do a job and raise a family of five offensive.  I find it offensive as a woman but more importantly, I find it offensive as a single mother of six. 

Granted, I have six kids, not five, and as of this moment, none of my children are pregnant or fathering a child.  My children’s special needs were not life long special needs but were dealt with as young children with therapy.  I also do not have a wide range of ages.  My children do not span from 19 to 4 months.  My children are between 23 and 14.

I have made choices that were personal about what I do for a living so as to allow me to be at home more frequently.  The reason for this is because I have been a single mom since my youngest was 2 1/2.  I could easily have made choices that were different and have a high powered career at this moment.  I did not think it was in the best interest of my children.  That is a personal decision.

Sarah Palin’s family has two parents.  Because of Palin’s elected position of governor, her husband took off time when their youngest was born.  I applaud her decision to continue with her political career while having children.  I do not think it could be done without strong family – namely husband – support.

So what does my average day look like?  I am up some time between 5:30 and 6 am.  The time varies because in the winter I workout in home, as opposed to outside, so some days I have to get up earlier.  I spend about a half hour of “private,” quiet time checking the local, state and national news.  At 6:30, I start making sure that the kids are getting up during the school year.  The bus picks up the kids at around 7:20. 

My day starts about 7:30 as I clean up around the kitchen – putting away cereal boxes, putting dishes in the sink – prior to heading to my computer to go to work.  I work for anywhere between four and ten hours a day.  My work, though, is not all done during business hours.  I may be working at midnight or at 6 am.  I sneak in a run somewhere in the morning, once the fog burns off.  I make myself breakfast and lunch.  I make dinner for my family.  I check homework assignments and to be sure we all have clean clothing to wear the next day.  After dinner, I do dishes, sweep the kitchen, run the vacuum and catch up on my reading.  Reading could be anything from the latest best seller to a magazine to whatever books the kids have been assigned in school as I like to be able to discuss these with them to political reports.

I try to be in bed, winding down by 9.  Some nights it is later but I value at least 8 hours of sleep.  This does not in any way explain the typical night where, even with only two kids at home, they both have activities in different locations at the same time.  It was worse by far when more of the kids were at home.  It is not, regardless of what people say, impossible.

People would ask me – how can you love so many kids?  Well, if you are a parent, you will know that three kids take up no more of all your love than one kid does.  People would ask me – which thankfully I have not heard yet – are they all yours and his?  I would respond in some flip manner that would basically tell them yes but it is truly not your business who mothered or fathered the children.  They are my family.  People would ask me – how do you keep your house clean?  Truthfully, I don’t.  My house is not spotless.  My house has, and probably always will, look lived in.  The kitchen table has mail or papers from school or dinner dishes on it.  My living room sofa or chair has folded laundry in it.  I do not clean my children’s rooms.  They live in them so they can live as they see fit as long as it does not attract mice. 

We all do what we have to do to have a loving environment in which to live and bring up our children.  That is the same regardless of whether you have on child or six children.  That is the same regardless of whether you work outside the home, work from home or are running for vice-president.