I am a stay at home Mom. I am not a Supermom. We all know what THAT kind of mom is like. It has gotten me thinking about all those said and unsaid “Mommy Standards” that distinguish a “Mom” from a “Supermom”. We all feel the pressure to meet those standards by having a spotless house (I mean I do stay home all day right?),cooking amazing meals (of course never out of a box AND it needs to be organic), raising smart kids(learning games, flashcards, no tv or wait, can’t tv help them learn?), playing outside (this means you are with them at all times and playing with them-no you may not sit down or get your phone out to answer texts or FB posts), making crafts (this could really be a learning situation as well, make crafts to LEARN and TEACH them something)! Totally achievable, right? Of course there are things throughout the day that must also be done correctly- some things I’ve recently seen or read are How to calm a toddler in 10 easy steps, How to raise happy healthy kids, How to NOT say NO, How to be a better parent….everything seems to be telling us what to do and if we do it correctly we’ll be happy and our kids will be happy! Wow so let me just take all this lovely advice and give myself about two weeks of uninterrupted me time to figure all this out and-TA DA! My kids will not throw tantrums, I’ll make myself happy by not telling my kids no and I will become a better parent just by doing everything correctly. Who knew it was all so simple? I only have one daughter who is two, so I’m still working things out as they come, but as she grows the pressure to reach those Supermommy standards seems to be only increasing. Oh no! I haven’t done flash cards and she can’t say the alphabet so she’s going to be behind when she gets in kindergarten and then it means she’ll be the old one in class and kids will make fun of her because she can’t read like them because their moms did the flash cards! I have started trying to look at myself through my daughters eyes. Does she see me talk to others about those supermoms that have it all together and how I don’t? What does this say to her? With so many outside pressures to insure that we raise our kids perfectly we forget that actually, we can never be perfect. Comparing ourselves to those “Perfect” moms and ignoring their struggles just puts even more pressure on ourselves to achieve the unachievable. I have bad days as a mom. I yell, I lose my patience, I have to sit my kid in front of the tv at times, I get hamburger helper on some days. I don’t feel like playing with my child sometimes. I make mistakes, and I acknowledge them. I want my daughter to know that I’m not perfect and that I don’t expect her to be either. I am not a Supermom. I am a Super Mom because I embrace both my strengths and weaknesses. Besides, I truly believe there is nothing better for a child then snuggles and I Love You’s throughout the day. And on those days where even that’s a stretch, at the end of the day go and look at your sleeping baby and know that that little piece of you thinks of you as their Super Mom not because of the things that you did right that day, but because when they wake up in the morning, you will be there.
