Hello there! I’m so excited to start a new series on my blog… Mom Love. These posts will be full of fun, encouragement, and some laughter for you mommies out there. I hope you enjoy
You’re a good mom. You are. Don’t listen to that annoying voice in your head that says that you are not doing a good enough job. That voice is lying to you. You know what I am talking about. The thoughts that leave you wondering if you are doing anything right. Are you saying the right things to your kids? Are you doing enough? The laundry that’s still piled on the couch – or the floor or wherever it gets pushed to after you wash and dry it – but you don’t have enough energy to fold and put it away and you think to yourself how much you suck and how lazy you are and for some reason you intertwine laundry execution into being a “good mom”.
You know last week when you had a pre-dinner blow up while the kids were playing drums with their forks and you were thinking about the fight you had just had with your husband. Everything caught up to you all at once and you had a mommy blow up. So the voice tells you that you are not patient enough or kind enough. That voice that tells you that you are not trying hard enough because you had your daughter buy her lunch at school yet again. The thought of making another PB&J sandwich is enough to send you to the looney bin. Or maybe the voice tells you that you are not worthy of your family because you can’t do anything right and instead of cutting yourself some much deserved slack you continue this toxic inner dialogue. You think to yourself that you should be doing a better job. That you, indeed are a bad mom.
I have had countless moms tell me to my face that they are “bad moms” when in fact, it couldn’t be further from the truth. I’d then ask myself “why are they being so hard on themselves?”. That’s SO not true. They are doing the best they can and while it may not be perfect sometimes it most definitely doesn’t make them a bad mom. After thinking about it for some time I realized that I was doing the exact same thing! Listening to that toxic voice was causing the joy of motherhood to bleed out of my soul.
Once I let that process for a bit, I decided that this cycle was no good and it has to end! But how? Ultimately I realized that grace was the answer. Because, the fact it, I’m never going to be perfect. I’m never going to be able to make all my kids lunches seamlessly every single time. I’m not going to stay on top of the dishes day in and day out, and if I’m being honest with myself, I’m rarely going to wash,dry,fold, and put away the freakin’ laundry all in one day.
I want to shower some truth on you today ladies – YOU ARE A GOOD MOM. You wouldn’t beat yourself up so much if you didn’t care a whole heck of a lot. You need to give yourself the gift of grace. Even if you have to do it every day. How many times to we give your kids grace – ummm, a lot!! So why not do the same for yourself? I know, it’s hard. So lets do it together. Lets be the mom’s that teach our kids grace by giving it to ourselves first. Let’s be the mom that celebrates imperfection. Because out of imperfection comes a whole lot of beauty.
So on Mother’s Day, tell another mom that she IS a good mom. That she is doing a good job and that she deserves to give herself some grace. And for you – go get that manicure, buy that new bag, or take a long long nap… and don’t you dare feel bad about it! You’re a good mom and you deserve a break. and as for that laundry pile, you just leave that alone. Tell the kids it’s like treasure hunting for their clothes. They’ll like it 😉
#youreagoodmom
Till next time,
Sam