A friend called me “supermum” the other day. I love her, I know her heart and I appreciate the compliment, but it has been a comment I have struggled with for the rest of the week.
Maybe it is because I have an online forum where I share so openly, where I tell you boldly that my theme for this year is “capacity”. Maybe it is because of the small filtered part of my life that you see via this blog (and let’s be honest everything on the net is filtered). You could think that I’m supermum. And that makes me really uncomfortable because I wouldn’t want anyone to think that at all.
Overall, I try to be positive in my posts; my aim with this blog and with my other writing is to encourage others no matter what their life looks like. But I really don’t want there to be a false sense of my reality here. I am writing this with a sink full of dirty dishes waiting for me, floors to be cleaned from the kid’s dinner, the playroom is strewn with toys, there is washing still on the line (at 730pm), and so far my dinner has been two pieces of chocolate slice and a bag of crisps.
I am like any other mum, who gets up and deals with her children the best she knows how, who sometimes fails miserably at that task and loses her temper so badly she has to apologise profusely. I am like any other mum who worries about her children day in, day out, about whether they are eating enough or too much, about their friends, their learning and their emotions. I am like any other mum who is continually juggling the constant cleaning with time for playing with her kids. I am like any other mum struggling to manage the household schedule of birthday parties, family events, swimming, dance and the (very) occasional date night with her husband.
If I am super mum then without a doubt so are the rest of you, who do not have such a public forum but are doing everyday the best you know how, like me. But really I don’t want to be called supermum. I am mum, and that is plenty enough for me.
I have had similar dinners many times!! xx
This is such a relieving post to read. I try to emphasize the positive because I have learned to think that way throughout life, but oh, there is plenty that falls by the wayside. I am trying to see morr opportunities to write about the rough stuff of parenting, because it’s surely there. But as always, trying to seek it doesn’t work; the writing comes when it’s ready and this one is not fully ready yet.
My husband often calls me things like supermom as well, but I don’t want that. I want a littlw calm in the chaos and to know my kids will grow up strong and healthy. That’s it for me.
Thanks for visiting Deborah and oh yes calm in the chaos, that’d be lovely.
Love this post Jodie. It resonates with me and I have the same feeling about being called super mum. I recently did a FAQ page on the blog, and one of the questions I get a lot is: Do you yell at your kids? Again, it made me wonder if I am sending out the vibe there that I’m a perfect mother. Which I am not and I don’t want to set myself up as super human. Another is what you mention here in that people see what I want them to see; it’s only a very small fraction of my life, as you say, it is filtered.
I would think when it comes down to it, most mums are similar in that we do the best for our kids with what we have and desperately want the best for them.
Thanks for this refreshing post.
Thanks for visiting and commenting Kelly,
I think the phrase “super mum” more than anything made me very aware about what I am presenting as my reality, and being very careful about that.
Thank you for such an honest post, I can definately relate to life as a busy mum like this!
Thanks Dee