Posted by Howard Richman on May 11 2008 at 09:58:29:
An article by Tierra Palmer in the Lancaster (OH) Eagle Gazette tells the story:
LANCASTER - There was a time when Kari Windon was against having children, but a tragedy made her re-think that position.HowardShe now has her hands full raising seven children - Emmet, 2; Caroline, 4; Benjamin, 5; Timothy, 7; Victoria, 8; Annabelle, 10; and Constance, 12 - who keep her busy from sun up to sun down.
It is a job that requires her to wear many different hats.
"I am a child development coordinator emphasizing character training, education, skills application and nutrition, which means I teach my children how to be good people and how to live and function in society; and I feed them," Windon, 37, said.
All of which she does without expecting to be compensated, though experts say her mothering work is worth at least a six-figure income.
"I´ve gotten to see all of their firsts - their first smile, their first step, their first teeth. I´ve also been able to see their big firsts like the Aha moment when the light bulb goes off and they learn their letters and numbers," said Windon, who has been homeschooling her children for the past seven years.
A survey by Salary.com assigned stay-at-home mothers a salary of $138,095 in 2007. That would be the compensation for all the roles they fill - including housekeeper, day care center teacher, cook, computer operator, laundry machine operator, janitor, facilities manager, chauffeur, CEO and psychologist....