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Over and over again moms will tell you how hard it is being a mom. Motherhood is demanding, it’s exhausting, and it’s never ending.
The demands of motherhood steal our joy, time and time again. We become angry, bitter, and depressed. We can’t do it all, and that realization zaps our joy day after day.
So yes, motherhood is hard. Yes, it often times steals our joy. But it’s OUR fault. Why?
Because we have sky-high expectations!
The messy moments of motherhood leave us feeling like a failure. Everywhere we turn we have someone telling us what we need to do to be a good mom.
Breast is best
Organic only
You must homeschool
Homeschooling? Your kids will be weird!
Play with your kids every day
But don’t play too much! You don’t want them to be spoiled.
Laundry? That needs folded right away!
Cook from scratch, and make sure it’s gluten free!
Don’t work, your kids need you.
Do work, otherwise you’ll never get ahead.
And if that wasn’t enough, don’t get me started on Pinterest. A quick search will tell me that my child’s wrapped valentine box is NOT up to standards.
The demands are insane! And trying to live up to them all leaves me defeated. It leaves me feeling worthless. And it leaves me feeling like I am not enough. And, if I had to guess, you feel the same way.
We allow the opinions of others diminish our worth. We let the sky-high expectations of motherhood steal our joy.
But, what if we ditched the expectations? What if we decided to do what was best for our family and leave the expectations at the door?
We’d have peace.
We’d have rest.
We’d have joy.
I don’t know about you, but I think that sounds like a no brainer! So, how do we do it? How do we get our joy back?
We CHOOSE to STOP listening to the “experts” and START listening to the needs of our family.
We CHOOSE to STOP comparing our menus, our school choices, and our parenting tactics to the neighbors and START embracing the choices we have made.
We CHOOSE to STOP being around other moms who make us feel less than, and START making time for those friends who respect our parenting choices, and who show us true hospitality.
Moms, we have a choice to make, and I don’t know about you, but I am SICK of letting the unrealistic expectations of motherhood steal my joy. I am ready to embrace being me. I am ready to stop letting others expectations override what my husband and I have chosen for my family.
You’re welcome! Thanks for stopping by!
Yes, Misty, this is so important! We DO put huge, unattainable expectations on ourselves… and sometimes on those around us as well. Thanks so much for this important reminder!