So the question bouncing around in my head at the moment is "Why start a blog?" Honestly, I don't know! I don't think I really have any interesting thoughts, nor do I have worthwhile stories that strangers would care to read. I'm not a particularly entertaining person (well... on purpose anyway), and I CERTAINLY wouldn't consider myself an expert at any one thing... especially parenting, which is the topic of this new venture of mine. So why? I have found that anytime I look online for another mother's words to help solidify a particular choice of mine, or just to make me feel like I'm not completely alone in this clueless world of mommyhood, all I find are mothers who I feel are far superior to me. They have read book after book after book and have being a mommy down to a science. Their kids are perfect, they eat perfect things, they have perfect diapers, and I picture their house to look like a perfect picture out of some sort of home magazine in which no toy is EVER out of place. I envy these moms and their orderly lifestyle, but that is not now, nor will it ever be, me. Those posts never make me feel better. Actually they have the opposite effect. So here I am, entering into this unknown and scary world of blogging, in hopes that other "not-so-perfect" mommies out there will feel comforted knowing that they are not alone.
A little bit of my mommy back-story:
My husband and I had been married 2.5 years when we decided we wanted to start a family. I was 25 and he was 27. A lot of people were shocked by us coming to this decision so early, but we wanted to be young parents and have been so incredibly happy that we did. Our little man, Carter Joseph, came into this world in May of 2010 and we were forever changed. Who knew that this one, itty bitty, slimy, and beautiful creature could create so much love and happiness? He came out smiling and has been a pretty happy baby ever since. (As I’m writing this he is screaming in the other room thinking I should come rescue him from his crib, so not all of the time.) 
Carter is ALL boy. From the time he could crawl it has been go go go! Everyone says that when babies start to walk, everything changes. Either that’s a lie or we had an expert crawler because there wasn’t one thing that he started doing after becoming a two-legged creature that he couldn’t do on all fours. He’s exhausting at times, but there is nothing more fun than watching him explore and try to figure out this huge unknown world on his own. Our little guy has brought so much joy and laughter into our lives and we feel incredibly blessed to be his parents.Now that all of the introductions are out of the way, I will be able to start writing “The True Tales of Mommyhood.” I will share stories, questions, and thoughts as a fellow mom, not an expert. My goal isn’t to teach others the correct way to parent (sure, there might be advice here and there, but I’m warning you now that anything I offer I learned on my own and have no education to back it up), I just want to connect us all through real life parenting experiences. The glorious struggles, embarrassing moments, joyous successes, and stressful days of being a mom are felt by every single mother, perfect or not, so let’s share, laugh, learn, scream, smile, and cry together.
I wrote a very long nice comment and it did not post. So before I do it again, I will try to post just this.
ReplyDeleteYour blog was very well written. I enjoyed reading your thoughts. You have done a super job being the perfect mommy. Being the youngest of my three children, you had no life experiences to draw from. No little brothers or sisters at home to practice on. You were never into baby-sitting so there was no experience there. For the most part my kids have always been live and learn anyway, so jumping into "Mommy" with both feet worked out just fine. Carter is a very perfectly adjusted little guy so that speaks volumes for your parenting. You are your father's daughter and "no" is not going to be so easy for you. But I'm sure he will here it a lot soon, and you will be able to make it stick. I love watching you develope your parenting skills. Love, Live and Learn. That's the way it works. Love you.
ReplyDeleteHi Tessa-
ReplyDeleteSo, I just tried to post a comment on here as well and it didn't go thru. While this probably won't be as long as the last one, I just wanted to say how much I appreciate you creating this blog. I like you, had my baby at 25. First let me say, Aubrey is the light of my life and I love her more than I could have ever imagined. My husband works all the time and while he does help when he can, I in some ways feel like a single mother. I work full-time as well and Aubrey has 3 different baby-sitters a week. This can create a very chaotic schedule for both myself and Aubrey. I would be lying if I said there weren't trials and tribulation that come along with being a parent. I look at some of those "perfect" mothers that you speak of and it seems like they have parenting down to a science. My brother and his wife have 4 children with one on the way and they handle all of it like it's a walk in the park. I often time wish it was that easy. Maybe it really isn't that easy for these so called "perfect" moms and that we just don't see the hard stuff. Aubrey is 19 months old and I think she is in the beginning stages of the "terrible twos." The tantrums are enough for my hair to turn gray. I worry that she will be a little terror if I don't start the disciplining now. It's hard because everybody has different advice on what will work. While there is a lot more I could say to mirror some of the feelings that you have, I won't for now. What are your thoughts on the terrible two stage and is Carter experiencing any of the associated behavior that comes along with T2s? Thanks again,
Dawn Sanders-Hines
Hi Dawn! Sorry I didn't see this until I posted today's tale. I'll talk about the "terrible twos" in the next few days! Thanks for reading!
ReplyDelete