1.14.2010

Validation (and kinda bragging, I guess)

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"Wheedle on the Needle"
By Stephen Cosgrove
Illustrated by Robin James


As a mom, and a working one at that, I suffer from this condition called "Mother's Guilt."

I'm sure you mom's out there are well familiar with what I am talking about. The feeling of never being there enough for your child, constant questioning... Do you let your kid watch TV? Does your family eat organic? Caught up on doctor's appointments? And of course, we all know that 3 year olds aren't all that great with showing their appreciation. Being a mother is constant hard work. And if you get several moms in the same room, they will all tell you that their way is the right way but that they feel just as guilty as every other mom out there.

I've finally come to grips with the fact that there is no such this as "The Perfect Mother" and I am certainly not it. As a person, I come with a whole basket full of faults. I'd be naive to think I could be perfect at anything... Well, except for being just lil ole me. And it took me quite a long time to realize that.

I know my house isn't clean enough. There is constantly laundry piled on the couch and craft supplies on the floor. My carpet is stained, Goose's room looks like a tornado hit it. I'm sure I let her watch too much TV and eat too much junk food. And she still isn't completely potty trained (almost, but not quite...)

But, well... meh.

Goose is a well adjusted child. She is happy.

I get more hugs and kisses than I can count. The kid prefers carrots to chocolate, always eats her veggies and drinks all her milk. And she is smarter than any 3 year old should be. She knows all her letters, can type her name on the computer, as well as my name (both Kelsy and Mommy) and Hubs. She is constantly asking what words are when she sees letters she recognizes and can even do some basic math. She knows that 1+1+1+1=4 and that 3+2=5. She has even begun to "write" stories. Goose has a love of art and music that I could have only wished for!

Hubs and I are so proud of her. We both hope to have her reading before she starts Kindergarten. Ever since she was born, we have read to her every night. Two books, one from Mommy and one from Daddy. I was speaking to a friend recently and talking about Hub and my goals for Goose and I mentioned that she is read to every night. My friend was surprised! I read to my child every night?! How do I find the time? She asked. She complained that she tried to read to her kiddos every day but couldn't find the time.

But how hard is it to carve out an extra 10 minutes to benefit your child? I don't even notice anymore, its just part of the bedtime routine. And I can't imagine losing that 10 minutes! I crawl into her bed and snuggle up under the covers and we read. And we talk about our day and if we have any prayers to say. We talk about what we would like to dream about and what we will be doing the next day. Then Daddy reads, then kisses and hugs. Then Goose will stay up for a while longer "reading" to herself.

Magic.

At least until she comes out of her room for the umpteeth time for kisses/hugs/water/potty, etc.

So I guess, wrapping this up (I always have a hard time concluding my blog posts), it's nice to feel a little bit of validation and know that I'm not that bad of a mother! ;-P

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"There's a Wheedle on the Needle
I know just what you're thinking.
But if you look up late at night,
You'll see his red nose blinking."

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I hear ya Kelsy ;) It's ten minutes people!

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