I remember when I was younger being told that effort was enough. That if you put your all into something and for some reason still didn’t succeed, that it was okay; you tried your best.
As I navigate this part of life called motherhood, it can be difficult to feel that your best effort is enough. If you’re like me and scroll social media and see these parents with smiles and children dressed in their best clothes every day, eating well balanced homemade meals, and never raising their voices in a moment of weakness, it’s easy to feel inadequate—that your best just isn’t enough.
Fact is, what we see on social media isn’t always reality. People spend hours perfecting their outfits, makeup, cleaning their homes, and bribing their children with candy to get them to sit still and pretend to like Brussels Sprouts (when in reality we know there are French fries and chicken nuggets waiting for them). It’s easy to compare ourselves to outsiders, wish that we could be like them, have their life, their bigger house, nicer car. But every day when you wake up, and your children crawl into bed with a smile and wrap their little arms around you, I hope you realize that you’re doing all right.
No, you’re doing more than all right. You were put on this earth and made for these children. Are there going to be struggles and days where you feel like you’re failing? Absolutely. I wish I had a magic wand to make that doubt go away, but we are human. There is something about bringing life into this world, the responsibility, burden, and joy of having to care for these tiny humans, and ensure that they turn out okay, that adds an element of insecurity and doubt that we’ve never experienced.
But it is okay if they don’t eat the vegetables or the stale French fries from the car seat that you forgot to clean out the last trip to the grocery store. It is okay if they still sleep next to you each night, and when you lose your temper, because we all do. You’re still doing all right!
So, I ask that we all band together to normalize being human and being parents. That perfection isn’t reality, and sometimes just making it through the day is enough.
Remember, you are enough and you’re doing just fine.
