Sunday, October 16, 2011

Motherhood to me

Motherhood is hard.
That needed to be said first.



I watch new mothers with their sleep-deprived shuffle step and their "I'll never find the time to shower again" frowns and I want to hug them and say, "Motherhood is hard, huh?"

But it gets better.

When I had my twins, my oldest was 3 years old and my daughter was 1 1/2 years old. 
I was in the middle of potty training both of them.
My C-section recovery was long and painful.
Breastfeeding twins was a beast of a job.
In those first two weeks:
I got an abscessed tooth and my whole face was swollen.
We ALL got pink eye and a cold.
The toilet overflowed and started filling up the downstairs living room.
And we had a family wedding.

Put on your Sunday best kids we're going to pretend like our lives aren't falling apart!



BUT

you know what else's doesn't get said enough?

You will be better for having become a mother.
Much better.

(Please understand that I mean no disrespect for those who are not mothers. I believe God loves all of His women and wishes to bless them all, no matter their circumstances. I can only speak of what I know and that is motherhood.)

Motherhood strips you of your
pride
selfishness
time (he-he-he)
belief that you are a good cook (What is this? It's disgusting!)
need to control everything
disillusion that you control ANYTHING
ability to keep your clothes clean

Motherhood offers you
strength you didn't know you had
patience (I know it doesn't always feel like it)
a deep love
chance to be a full time example of good behavior
humility (because you will fail a little at being a full-time example)
forever friends

I love being a mother. It is a TON of work but work has yet to kill me. Being a mother fills me with joy. It shapes who I am. 
Motherhood to me
is a blessing.
MamaBlogga Group Writing Project

25 comments:

  1. Power to moms! I am so glad that I don't have to be the mom. My poor kids would have to revolt or got to serious therapy!

    LOL! Love it!

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  2. amen. i can see myself changing a lot because of my kids.

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  3. Not that I would know, but I think moms have to be pretty tough. I know my mom is! It takes a lot of strength and discipline to be patient and to sacrifice your own time. So yeah, moms rock!

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  4. All of this is true. I will confirm everything that Shelly just said.

    This post made me want to cry. Sometimes I need to be reminded that Motherhood is worth it. Even though it is hard. Because everything that you do that is hard is the most rewarding.

    I love being a mom.

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  5. Absolutely!!! Great post. I can relate 100% and I only have 1. Well, 3 if you count the 3yr old Great Dane and my husband, who both act like children most of the time.

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  6. This is beautiful. And so true. My children have taught me how to love better, laugh more, and forgive faster.

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  7. I, too, can relate, though I've only the one whirling dervish. (I swear, at times, it's like there's somehow two of her).
    Though, I do wonder how many kids five cats equal to.

    At least there's school now and I can now get some measure of peace from 8am to 4pm. But when it's the holidays, then there's more chaos.
    Thank goodness she's mostly occupied by her pet lamb at the moment.

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  9. Newborn twins, a 1 1/2 year old, and a 3 year old? I bow to your fortitude and sanity.

    There is a reason having children is a commandment. It refines us. Nothing will humble you faster or love you more than a child :)

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  10. that was such an awesome post.
    i wanted twins once, but you put my silly whim into perspective! i sure dont miss those early days, i love where we are, every day =) (crabby pants and all!)

    thanks for the jovial reminders!

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  11. Well said. Thanks for the reminder and the boost!

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  12. I just JUMPED to the comment form! Yes, yes, yes on all your thoughts on motherhood. I have three boys and today I was so thankful for each and every one of the little feral beasts. What would I do without them, leaping on my head in the morning?
    Rah #goatposse!

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  13. AMEN! I don't think I can add anything to that. Well said. :)

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  14. It's all that, Shelly. It does get better, but sometimes it's not until they're married and out on their own. And you still worry about them.

    I think one of the hardest things about being a mom is going from being the most beautiful, talented, smart, witty woman in the world to the stupidest thing God put on the earth. Obviously, I'm neither of those, and my kids know that now. But I'm okay with that.

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  15. Motherhood is pretty awesome, I agree. However, I just wanted to let you know that seeing the social networking buttons on your blog made me question why mine weren't working, so this post just sent me on an hour-long detour into the intricacies of blogger and over-my-head HTML editing.

    In the end, however, I got it fixed. Thanks, Shelly Brown!

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  16. Very well written! You're one of the best moms I know. Thanks for sharing!

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  17. Nice post! And ... I didn't know you had twins?!? Mine are ID girls - four years old. They were my first and so far only so I didn't have so much to deal with those first weeks as you did - holy cow!

    Most days I feel pretty awesome and then there are those few days that I taste some serious humble pie. ;)

    Thanks for sharing your insights!

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  18. Love this post - it is so true! :)

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  19. Yay for motherhood! Thanks for the reminder to appreciate it even in the hard times.

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  20. This is beautiful, Shelly.

    And four kids three and under?! (I actually had a friend growing up who had a baby, then twins a year later, then another baby 18 months later--four under three!) I daresay if life didn't get better than those first couple weeks, motherhood would probably kill us all!

    You've inspired me today. Thank you so much for participating!

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  21. Beautiful post, Shelly! I'm with you--even when everything seems to be falling apart and you wonder if you'll ever sleep again, motherhood is the greatest blessing God has ever given me.

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  22. Can I just call you Wonder Woman, 'cause that's what you are.

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  23. So true! And I can't even imagine having twins. I only have two and I'm always trying to catch up with them. ;)

    Such a beautiful, inspiring post, Shelly. Thank you for sharing this with us. I know for a fact that I am a little bit more patient now that I'm a mother, than before when I was single.

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  24. Wow! Shelly! This is beautiful. I love the honesty and ugliness (that whole abscessed tooth + pink eye thing) and beauty! What lucky kids!

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