The other week at Mums Group we had a new mum-to-be join us. She had never been to a Mums Group before and was nervous to join us. Would we be judgy mums? Would we be sitting around talking about all the homemade, artificial free snacks we’ve been making for our children? Would we instantly tell her how she should eat, sleep, stretch and ultimately give birth? She hadn’t even come yet and she was already fearful of judgment.
Of course after being in group for 5minutes and watching my 18month old eat crackers off the floor my new mum friend felt at ease.
It’s funny isn’t it, how easily as mums we worry about others, we worry about what we do and say. This poor mum-to-be was months off even having a baby and was already worried about being judged.
Now I’m not saying that letting your kids eat crackers off the floor is the way to go, but it reminded me that the simple act of not faking our lives, not pretending to be something we’re not can help another mum embrace the crazy life that motherhood brings.
If you’re the mum who loves planning open ended activities for their kids, who bakes nutritious snacks for lunchboxes and makes sure their kids always look well dressed then that’s awesome!
If you’re the mum who lets their kids watch tv all day and feeds them cheese and bacon balls and does school runs in their pjs then that’s great too!
If you’re the mum who is really struggling to find their rhythm and find the joy in being at home with kids then we’ve been there too!
We all have small unpredictable humans to care for.
The best thing we can do is be honest and real with how we’re doing.
Be the mum that other mums feel safe to come to with their struggles.
Share the ups, share the downs. Talk about the cool activities we’ve done with our kids but also talk about the hippo sized pile of washing we have waiting at home. Let us be mums who empower each other.
Cause at the end of the day, all of your kids have eaten something gross off the floor… and you know it 😉