This is the type of question you can expect to be asked if you have been out of work for a longer while. And if you have great references and experience, your interviewer will be more inclined to explore the reasons for recent lengthy gaps in your work history. Do not refer to this period as idle time. Tell the interviewer that you have been exploring your options. These can include self-employment, consulting, traveling, taking courses, updating your credentials and certificates, doing self study, etc. Convey that you were productive and learning, even if you weren’t gainfully employed. It’s ok to avoid talking about temp and part time jobs because it will bring up too many questions about why those jobs didn’t last. If you weren’t working because you were raising a family, talk about business-related skills used in running a home such as budgeting, time management, comparative shopping, tracking expenses, being detail oriented and highly organized. Do everything you can to keep the interviewer from thinking you were idly sitting on your butt.