Ok, let`s adress this term first just to get it out of the way.

Accoring to Wikipedia the job of the Hausfrau or Homemaker is:

Homemaking is a mainly American term for the management of a home, otherwise known as housework, housekeeping or household management (the act of overseeing the organizational, financial, day-to-day operations of a house or estate, and the managing of other domestic concerns).

Many countries operate with the title Homemaker because it`s gender neutral and these are countries with a higher range of gender equality. In Switzerland and other similar old fashioned places, this job is gender related and so there is no need for a neutral name thus Hausfrau.

I read in a Swiss newspaper about a stay-at-home dad (obliously they must exist but aparently don`t want to fight over the title) who was brought forth as a positive example on Mothers-day. His children had baked him a cake and bought him flowers. Hm..if what it takes to be celebrated on Mothers-day is doing the laundry and cooking Mittagessen then maybe they should change it to Hausmaking-day. To me motherhood is something different.

Ok, back to the subject.

I don`t normally call myself a Hausfrau, but because I am a stay-at-home mom this is the occupation I am given on all official documents turned out by the Swiss state. So now after seven years in this country I use it with a great sense of irony. Does it define me? No, of corse not. No one word can ever define a person.

We all have our more or less prejudice meaning when hearing that someone is a Hausfrau. I did to, but now I work my way around it. I don`t try to be like my mother in law (who per definition is the best Swiss Hausfrau ever!), I just try to take care of my family and give the kids a cosy home.