Elizabeth, the blogger behind the website This Little Home of Mine, is a homeschooling stay at home mom of four kids six and under, including a newborn and a daughter with special needs. To say her life is full, I imagine, is quite the understatement. Like many moms, Elizabeth stays home with her kids and does the work of homeschooling and taking care of her house while her husband goes outside the home to work every day.
Elizabeth explained in a recent blog post that because the work she does as a stay at home mom is so valuable, she and her husband decided that they needed to increase the amount of life insurance they had on her. After all, if something were to happen to Elizabeth her husband would face some great expenses with childcare and schooling, at the very least.
However, when they called their life insurance agent to try and purchase more coverage they were surprised that they were met with resistance. More than that, they were even met with a bit of an insult. Elizabeth explains in her blog post:
As he and the customer service agent commenced with discussing the details, the employee began by inquiring about my occupation. My husband explained that I was at home full-time with our children. At that point, the response to my husband was as follows:
“Sir, why would you insure a Ford at a Mercedes rate?”
I think I speak for women everywhere, whether you’re a stay at home mom or not, when I say: “Say what????? Come again???” and “OH NO YOU DIT-INT!!” Honestly when I read Elizabeth’s words, my jaw dropped. How is it in 2017 that someone in business could still be so disrespectful when talking about a mother’s work? Elizabeth continues:
Wow! We have heard much in response to my being at home full-time, but friends, this was a new one, and we couldn’t help but laugh. Comments like these no longer surprise us. The war on families…the war on children – In our culture, it is not hidden from clear view. Our world’s definition of worth oftentimes differs from what is truly valuable, and comments like these can simply serve as a reminder that those who choose to serve their families at home may be lacking when it comes to feeling encouraged as they walk in their calling.
In the end (apparently because they are much better Christians that I am, because I would’ve been like BYE), Elizabeth and her husband agreed to send the insurance company a written statement explaining why they wanted to expand the life insurance coverage on her. They had to attempt to put her worth in writing. To quantify the worth of her choice to be a stay at home mom.
I don’t know about you but I find that repulsive.
