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This is so true. My mom was not at home after I was about 10 years old, and although I loved her dearly, I do regret having been exposed to so much, so soon. Even if I tried to behave, my older sibling's friends were always around to introduce me to new ideas.
I'm a stay-at-home mom, now. I could certainly make more money if I went back to work, but I don't need the money that badly. I need to know my kids are protected.

This is really sad. My husband and I volunteer a lot of time at school and with scouts. We see a lot of the same parents doing the heavy lifting every year. I'm always sorry to see how few parents take the time to get involved in the lives of their children on this level. Not only do the kids benefit by involvement with adults, but the adults gain tremendous satisfaction from helping. It's a great way for us to get to know our sons' peers and their parents.

I can't say I'm always the perfect mom, but our sons come home to an open door at the end of the school day, and we almost always sit down to dinner as a family. We live in an increasingly upscale suburb. We don't live as fancy as many of our neighbors, but I'm grateful we are very family based.