The Secret To Being a Great Mom
I remember when I was pregnant with my now 5 year old.
I wanted to be amazing at parenting. I wanted to do everything right, to stick to my underlying principles that were so far guiding my decision making.
I wanted to make sure that I was gentle but firm, that my child was a total embodiment of rigor, discipline and gentle nurturing. No greater compliment could be handed to me at his graduation than ‘Wow, you must have had a great Mom.’
I figured, as long as I stayed the course, was unwavering, never faltered, sacrificed for the good of the tiny human I was molding like clay, that I would succeed. I’d be the champ, the world’s greatest Mom.
And, folks, I’m really more like the World’s Okayest Mom.
My kids don't know sign language, they’d rather run around and tackle each other than sit through a Montessori Music Class. They prefer pizza and ice cream to kale smoothies. They sometimes have great manners, and sometimes they don’t.
They recognize the logos of Target and McDonald’s more than different nations’ flags.
The running joke about being the Okayest Mom or Dad is something that my husband and I used to sarcastically comment at each other whenever our kids were being savages in the checkout line, or we opted to let our true colors shine through as someone else’s kid was being the epitome of grace.
Then we stopped kicking ourselves and looked around at other crazy kids, at relaxed parents walking so far behind them, that maybe they weren’t together?
We realized that to be a great parent, all you have to do is do you.
Trust your gut, your own instincts and don’t be afraid of making mistakes.
I promise you won’t screw up your kid.
You will drop him/her. You will get food in their eyes. You will do something that you might not do again if given the chance. But kids are resilient. They come out of the womb tough and moldable. I promise, if you stay true to you and what feels right, they’re going to be amazing humans.
Kale smoothie optional.
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