You know why I didn’t write a blog post yesterday?! My kids and I ordered pizza, had a ‘pizza party’ in the living room, skipped bath time and fell asleep snuggling while watching cartoons. And I didn’t wake up.. I just went to bed with them. Not picture perfect by any means. But does that make me less then… neglectful… a ‘bad mom’?! Absolutely not…
You know what’s wrong with being a mom (or dad) in today’s society.
- Social media (People only post happy stuff/ their perfect moments)
- Pintrest (The struggle is real.. all these pintrest worthy birthday parties/ daycare treats during holidays)
- The judgements “The way I do it is best” “you cannot do that and this is why” ‘I say– hell you do what you need to do when you need to do it to survive’
So my advice for all parents is..
- Breastfeed if it is right for you- for the first 6m, or 12m, or 18m, or 2y and beyond. Where a cover- if you want… Or don’t. Nurse in public if you want… or privately. Pump if you choose (koodos to all the exclusive pumpers- I imagine this is tough)
- Use formula if you want- from day one, month 3, month 6.. whenever you need to. We are so blessed to live in a society where you can feed your baby something other than breastmilk. Science is amazing!
- You know what else? Regardless of which method you choose support your fellow mothers in which ever way they choose!
- Baby led weaning/ homemade purees/ store bought jars/ squeezy pouches (my favorite convenient purchase for toddlers) There is not one way that is better then the other. Gosh I think I have done a variety of all of the above. Not to mention kids are different and might take more to one or the other. My daughter wanted nothing to do with baby led weaning (I read a book and thought this way the way to go and pushed hard for it) so I made her homemade ‘organic’ purees and BOOM she ate. My son never had the luxury of ‘organic’ (2nd kid syndrome) but he was having nothing to do with purees. Baby led weaning it was! Squeeze pouches best treat ever. Jarred baby prunes perfect cabinet fix for a constipated kid. You do you! This momma won’t judge. If your kid is fed you are doing a great job!
- Clothe or sposies?! Guess what– it doesn’t freaking matter. I started with sposies, fell in love with apple cheeks when my daughter was 5 months old, and I am finishing diaper days with sposies because I don’t have any time for diaper laundry. If your kid has a dry bum YOU are doing a good job!
- Babywear and/or use a stroller? Really this comes down to preference. If you want to wear your baby while they nap–do it! Trust me, you can be pretty productive with a sleeping baby strapped to your back.. That doesn’t mean that walking your baby in a stroller/ or napping them in their bassinet/ crib is wrong. If your baby is loved your nailing it momma!
- So basically if you are feeding your child, keeping them dry and clean and loving them you are nailing being a parent–simple. Let’s stop judging each other, making expectations of parenthood unbearable and just support one another. Having a living room pizza party in the middle of the week doesn’t make me a bad mom it creates fun memories for my kids and I to cherish!
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Holly's Hustle 