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You Are Here Home » My Life » Family » In The Thick of Motherhood, It’s Not All Pretty

March 18, 2013 By SoberJulie 15 Comments

In The Thick of Motherhood, It’s Not All Pretty

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Sitting in my quiet home today has me somewhat in a state of bliss, I’ve actually contemplated reorganizing the shoes I’m that happy! Days like today are the ones that aren’t listed in the Motherhood books. I have YET to find a book titled Motherhood: The state when a person fully understands the value of silence.

I’m sure there’s a title out there which is similar to the one I’ve noted but it definitely wasn’t on my pre-Motherhood reading list. Within the stacks of What to Expect books there was an absence of information on what my reality would be.

I suspect that my book choices for the early years of Motherood must have been driven by my idyllic view of what my experience in Motherhood should be. At that stage of my life I was a person who pasted on a smile, sweeping any concerns under the rug and did my best to seize the day, continuously moving forward amidst the chaos as if I were fine.

Much like that cupboard under your kitchen sink which you hope nobody ever opens, I looked great on the surface but things were a mess inside of myself.

Always fine and oh-so happy to be a Mother.

In Motherhood I haven’t always been fine.

Motherhood Playing recorderThere have been many times during Motherhood when I haven’t been fine, when I’ve been frustrated to the point where I was certain I was a failure. Times when I used crutches to get by and stuff down my emotions.

Because like every good woman I’d set the measure of a “good Mom” so bloody high there was no way I’d ever reach it.

When my eldest refused to wear clothes to school, leaving me no choice than to drop my 7-year-old off at school dressed in the pyjamas she’d worn the night before. Or the day my house cleaner told me I should be ashamed that I hadn’t found the dirty panties my 5-year-old hid behind her dresser and I believed her. From the birth of my children until this day I have too many of these examples to list.

When my breaking point came, which it does for every Mother, I had to make a hard decision. I could either choose to live on the next decade or so counting down the minutes until bedtime, trying my best to stuff happy memories into these children’s lives, pretending to myself I was fine OR I could roll with the life I was actually given.

My Quirky Family Is Mine

Motherhood shoppingWe are the family who can be relied upon to be noticed when out in public. We are the rag-tag bunch with one child inevitably dressed in some DIVA-bling get up, one child sullenly following with her super-comfy jeans which have been worn for more than 4 days in a row and a Mother and Father who are walking along smiling through it all, having given up on trying to fit into a mold.

I’ve chosen to accept myself and my quirky family for exactly what we are. Please don’t get me wrong, this doesn’t mean I don’t have days when I wish the hours until bed-time away. There are difficult days, too many of them, but I’ve given up measuring my performance on my personal Mom-fail meter.

Honey, if I continued measuring myself on such a strict scale I’d be feeling like a failure constantly and running around like a Mamma chicken with her head cut off. That’s tiring, far too tiring.

Instead, these days I snatch the small moments to fill my cup of gratitude.

Whenever and however I can, I steal moments from my children with the swiftness of a professional thief. Some of these moments happen throughout the day; when I notice my offspring are actually playing amicably together rather than arguing, when I catch a glimpse of my child engrossed in a good book, the way her lips purse as she’s sleeping….simple moments which hold such power!

I stash this power away in my heart and I use it like a source of energy when I am in the middle of the difficult days. When nothing I’m doing is going right and I’m certain I should be performing better, I pull a memory out of that stash and remind myself that I’m in the thick of it all.

In The Thick of Motherhood, It’s Not All Pretty

That’s a saying my Father used to use when I was in a particularly difficult math problem or something challenging, “You’re in the thick of it Julie, don’t give up yet!”

Being in the thick of it and knowing it’s difficult means I’m doing something right. It means I’m connected, invested and willing to face the challenge of the moment and when it comes to Motherhood that’s a success in my mind.

Being invested in my role as a Mother includes knowing how I’m doing with it all and ensuring that I take care of myself. By allowing myself to have bad days, by relishing in the silence of an empty house, by talking with friends and being open about the frustrations, all of this helps ground me and allows me to actually BE the Mother God wants me to be.

As long as I’m present and willing then I’m on the right path and that doesn’t mean that I’ll be enjoying every moment but it does mean that I’m in the thick of Motherhood as it really is!

 

Filed Under: Family, Motherhood, My Life, Slider

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Julia says

    March 18, 2013 at 12:47 pm

    Yes to all of this! Great post and so true in my life too.

    Reply
    • SoberJulie says

      March 18, 2013 at 1:30 pm

      Thanks Julia, sometimes just knowing we’re not alone is enough

      Reply
  2. Christine @MommyMatter says

    March 18, 2013 at 1:08 pm

    One thing I’ve been trying to learn the past few months is to lower my expectations. There are so many days I over stress myself, for no reason at all. The kids are happy, the roof hasn’t blown off our homes, life is good. Kitchen may be a mess, laundry not done, house an absolute write off, but those things won’t make us happy if I focus on them. Focusing on my family should always exceed the focus for anything is.

    Beautiful post Julie :)

    Reply
    • SoberJulie says

      March 18, 2013 at 3:59 pm

      So true, since I’ve lowered my expectations I’m so much happier although my house isn’t as clean

      Reply
  3. paula schuck says

    March 18, 2013 at 1:47 pm

    Oh Julie what a fantastic post!! Absolutely. This is my family too. My youngest has always dressed herself strangely. Mismatched and superhero stuff are very common. But who cares really? I let a lot of stuff go as I move through motherhood. (Half the time my youngest with the curly hair doesn’t brush her hair. It drives her grandma wild. I think I secretly let her get away with it on purpose sometimes to see the reaction. ) In the end will they remember that you dressed them impeccably or that you let them be creative or that they wore a tutu to school at 7? Who knows? It’s all good as long as everyone is happy and your relationship stays in tact. Love this post!

    Reply
    • SoberJulie says

      March 18, 2013 at 3:59 pm

      hahaha I love that you pull Grandma’s leg ;)
      Allowing my children to be themselves has been freeing to say the least

      Reply
  4. Shari G says

    March 18, 2013 at 2:23 pm

    So true!!! I went to a Knitting group, and there were actually a lot of kids, but the ladies were like “you are on vacation aren’t you?” So relaxing to go somewhere and not have to worry about anyone but me!

    Reply
    • SoberJulie says

      March 18, 2013 at 4:00 pm

      Time away, just for ourselves is super important!!

      Reply
  5. Brand says

    March 18, 2013 at 2:41 pm

    What a great post and so true! I think quirky families are the BEST! :)

    Reply
  6. Shannon says

    March 18, 2013 at 3:39 pm

    Ha! My youngest (5) went to school with panda covered sox, tights tucked INTO the socks, skirt and Canada T shirt and Bunny ears. I asked her to look at herself in the mirror and I asked her, “How do you think you look?” “Mom I look GREAT!” So off she went. :) You may be in the “thick of it”, over here I am “winging it!”.

    Reply
  7. Wendy [mapsgirl] says

    March 18, 2013 at 6:35 pm

    Love this!! I think all new moms need to read this to know that it won’t always be great…AND THAT IS OKAY!

    Reply
  8. Tammy @inRdream says

    March 18, 2013 at 6:35 pm

    Amazing post Julie! I too am in the think of motherhood, I am working on lowering my expectations and just go with it. I find it very hard to allow the house to stay “lived in” but I am working hard on finding my balance. The first step is knowing how precious each moment is and when you do, making each moment shine ( or try to. )

    Reply
  9. gingermommy says

    March 18, 2013 at 8:34 pm

    I have been a mom ofr almost 19 years since I was 17. I have had ups, downs and states of confusion, sadness and excitement. Like everything there is good and bad. I welcome everything as opportunity to grow. It is odd for me to be alone , even for a few seconds with four kids. But when I am, I miss them. So I appreciate them and their quirkiness that much more.

    Reply
  10. Christine says

    March 21, 2013 at 12:20 pm

    I love this post!!! I think it reflects so much of what all moms go through. Only some don’t admit it! LOL! I feel the same way as you do. Ahhhh…I love my quirky family!

    Reply
  11. ashley picco says

    March 26, 2013 at 2:03 pm

    I can so relate to this. My oldest is often wearing pj’s or his batman cape. I gave up trying to persuade him otherwise a LONG time ago.

    Reply

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