Archive for May, 2009
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I Think I May Be A Bad Mommy Too
Thursday, May 14th, 2009It could just be my imagination but it seems as though more and more frequently I am reading articles and blog posts that vilify women who openly speak about their struggles and feelings about motherhood. The backlash against Ayelet Waldman and her recent book, Bad Mother is only one example of many. In the book she openly talks about how she feels about her husband and her kids. Her crime seems to be her honesty and her pointed observation that the expectation of mothers is completely unreachable. Funny thing is that her family doesn’t seem to be disturbed by any of what she says. She seems to be in a happy marriage and has 4 pretty well adjusted kids. So what’s the problem?
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Happy Mother’s Day
Friday, May 8th, 2009One of my favorite songs, by John Mayer, has a line that says, “Girls become lovers who turn into mothers, so, mothers, be good to your daughters, too.” This resonates with me because all the work I do concerns the parents that you will become, or already are. When I was pregnant, a close friend who has three children said to me, “Don’t wish away your pregnancy or those first sleep-deprived months. One day, you’ll wish for them back.” This is so true. I love each stage of Alexander’s growth, but some days, I wish he still had tiny feet! Although the parent-child relationship is always complicated, it is also the most fundamental human bond. I just want to share with you a story of my own mom.
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The Madonna Phenomenon… no, not that Madonna
Tuesday, May 5th, 2009Looking through women’s magazines and news articles about celebrity moms, you might conclude that new mothers are treated like royalty, or at least the mothers of royalty. By these accounts, new mothers glow, parents and in-laws dote, partners are awed, and girlfriends constantly stream in to help with the house, the kids, and the shopping. But does it really happen? Ask your mom or grandmother what things were like when she had her babies.
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Rewards of Motherhood: A Mother’s Day Edition
Friday, May 1st, 2009As it’s getting closer to Mother’s Day I am doing a lot of thinking about motherhood. Just as with the stages of pregnancy, it changes and shifts as we move through each new stage and phase of our fetus/infant/toddler/child/tween/teenager… ah heck, baby’s life.
