Me... A Trophy Wife?

Before I became a mom, OE and I were just another husband/wife team with concession stands. I would spend hours upon hours in the stands, just like so many others out here. Of course I still did all of the behind-the-scenes stuff, but the "me" that others saw was generally the owner/operator. Nobody thought twice if I had bags under my eyes from working 12 consecutive 15 hour days in the heat, if I had flour on my face, or batter on my clothes, or even mud or smudges from fixing a leak or rolling up hoses. When I became a mom, I essentially gave all of that up (such a tragedy, I know...) for diapers, housework, and playgroup dramas. We've stayed home and played at a "normal" life for almost 3 years. Now I find myself back in carnyland. So many of the faces are the same that I remember, but somehow it's different. I guess it's because I'm different now, both in real life, and in the way others perceive me. Gone are the days that it's acceptable to 'look' like other carnies.

Since re-entering the carnival world, I find myself making sure my clothes are acceptable, that my hair isn't perpetually pulled back into a pony tail, and I've also taken to wearing makeup every day, not just when I plan to go out somewhere, since inevitably, I will be out and about at some point during the day. I'm expected to make idle conversation with people I used to just nod and wave at. Yes, I still do all the running, accounting, and misc crap that goes with the day to day life out here, but nobody sees that. They only see me living a 'leisurely' life, socializing and playing with Charity.

All of this makes me wonder... Have I become a trophy wife? Now anybody that knows me IRL definitely knows that the idea is somewhat absurd. On the other hand though, the life I've been describing sounds suspiciously like one. If the shoe fits, right?