Wednesday, March 27, 2013

I'm a StrongMom. Are you?

Moms everywhere have felt it. 

The tone of another mom's voice. 

That look from one to another.

The words. "Ohhh, really?" "You did?" "Well, we ..." 

Reactions are easy to let slip by. Sometimes we can't help ourselves. 

Sometimes, though, we should stop and think about who we're judging. 

What sort of example we're setting for our children. 

My 6-year-old already rolls her eyes. 

She jokes about it. But what if she saw it for real? 

What if she saw me, her mother, the person she trusts more than almost anyone, do it towards another woman? Another mom? What kind of example would that be? 

I'm tired of it. We hear lots of it in social media, the immediate backlash to those who judge. The immediate need to respect and the desire to stand strong, together, the whole lot of us. 

I feel it, too. I've said it before, in fact. 

I went over to Shell's place and said it loud. Check out some of my thoughts on the mommy wars.

And now, I'm saying it again, and taking a pledge to say it louder! And to encourage you to do it, too.



I judge myself enough for the both of us. Doesn't every mom? 

Don't moms wonder if they're broken, doing something wrong for their little ones?

And how many of us feel we need a break from parenting?

Do you cringe when you can't stand your kid's favorite annoying toy? Yeah, me, too. 

Parenting is exhausting. Moms crash and burn even if it makes us sad. It really just shows that we're normal.



Truth. There's no such thing as a mom manual. There are no instructions when our babies are born. We do the best we can. As best we can. Always. You do it your way and I will do it mine.

You do you.

And stop judging others who do differently. They're just doing their thing, too.

Take a few minutes to head on over to StrongMoms Empower to take the pledge today.

Empower each other. Support one another. Be a friend.

Turn a blind eye to the messy house and bring over some coffee or cupcakes.

Offer to hold the baby while she takes a quick, uninterrupted shower.

Feed the baby and reserve judgment. You likely have NO idea how she came to the decision on how to feed. Formula or breast milk. It's not your business anyway. The baby is eating, being cared for? Yes? That's all that matters.

Hold the door open at Target. Steady her cart while she unloads.

Reach out to a fellow mom. Show her you care. It matters. We matter to one another.

And consider taking this quick pledge today! StrongMoms Empower. Won't you?

** I am participating in the StrongMoms Empower campaign with One2One Network. I have not been compensated in any way for this post. All expressed opinions are completely my own. 

7 comments:

  1. I am mentally applauding, because this post is just spot-on.

    Enough with the Judgy Mc Judgerson syndrome! I am so sick of those know-it-alls who keep telling you how to do things and where you are going wrong. they can shove it :-)

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  2. We all need to support, empower, and befriend each other as much as possible. And yes, we all judge ourselves enough without any external judgement. Well said!

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  3. I love this.
    This topic will never die because women are assholes.
    Yup.
    Red, blue, white, black, breastfeeding, crunchy, attachment, we all suck because "our veiws" are the right ones.
    Give me a break.

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  4. I absolutely ADORE this post. We all judge way too much. I feel like what women need more than anything is validation. And support. Which you give in spades my friend! :)

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  5. I love this so much.

    Us moms need to stick together, support each other, and cut out the bullshit.

    You are a great mom, and a great woman.

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  6. The judgement that bothers me the most is my own, because it almost always has more to do with my feelings about myself than anything other moms are doing. When other parents actions don't bother me, I know I'm in a good place.

    Great topic!

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  7. You said it. Yesterday at the park a lady basically implied my 2 yo was better behaved than hers but I told her he was rotten too and we had a moment of solidarity. It was very refreshing.

    ReplyDelete

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