missionmightymom

I had a conversation with one of my sweetest friends yesterday who just so happens to be a new Mommy. She repeated the age old saying, “Being a Momma is by far the hardest job in the world, and the most rewarding.” She admitted that although she had heard this time and time again before Mommahood, she didn’t completely understand it until she held her precious baby in her arms. And how could she?!

Being a Mommy is a privilege. It is an honor. And a huge responsibility. Being a Mommy adds an enormous amount of pressure to a woman. Pressure to be the best. Pressure to be the most fun. Pressure to be a good role model. Pressure to loose the baby weight. Pressure to throw the best party. Pressure to have the most well-behaved child. It can be so overwhelming. If we let it!

As a working mom, I deal with these pressures and more on a daily basis. I’ve actually had to ban myself from Pintrest in an attempt at sanity. I realized it was just another source of pressure, so I now avoid it.

I can only be the best ME.

I have mere hours with my babies each weeknight. Its incredibly sad and I feel guilty for it every single day. But it’s the sacrifice I make in order to provide financial security for my girls. A sacrifice that will hopefully make their road a little easier.

Because our hours together are so few, I cherish them with every fiber of my being. I’ve had to cut myself some slack in order to make the most of our time together. I buy cupcakes for their class parties. Gasp! Unheard of, I know. Our meals are not always gourmet. Sometimes we have PB&J…for supper. Gasp! Unheard of, I know. Sometimes my child is the noise-maker at the restaurant. I should be ashamed, right?! Wrong!

I’ve had to prioritize, and it’s a daily struggle. When I get home from work at 6pm, and have to cook supper, switch out laundry, feed my family, do the dishes, bathe the girls, maintain my marriage, and have one girl in bed at 7pm (yes, 7pm. She insists!) and the other in bed at 8pm, baking cupcakes doesn’t seem all that important. Until I finally lay down for bed. And then it’s, ‘Am I a failure because the cupcakes aren’t homemade?’ ‘Is Harper going to be embarrassed?’ ‘Is my husband going to be embarrassed? ‘Should I be embarrassed?’

Deep down I know the answer. It’s NO.

What is going to impact my girls is the love that I smother them with. And no amount of time in the kitchen proves that more than my undivided attention. I know that they know how much I love them. I know that they know that I love their Daddy. I know that they feel safe. I know that they are happy girls. Their smiles and belly laughs let me know that I am doing a good job.

The pressures will remain, undoubtedly. But I encourage all Momma’s to back out of the rat race. Look at your babies. Are they happy? Do they love you? Do you love them? There, that settles it. Congrats Momma. You are amazing!