In case you stop by today….
The kids’ breakfast is still on the counter…most likely uneaten. The ice machine is broken & sitting in the middle of the floor. We started to clean the porch but lost interest halfway through so everything is stacked on top of the couches & tables. The dog threw up on the couch and I have NO idea how to get the smell out – so just don’t sit there (seriously – don’t do it)! The kitchen table is full of old homework and things that have no place. The laundry room is full, the pantry is full. In fact, every room is full. The sink is most likely full of dishes with a CLEAN dishwasher next to it that we’ll probably grab from for the next few days. The basement is the cleanest place in the house….and also where we spend the most time. Ironic?? Nope!
And the difference with you stopping by today versus any other day is that I’m not going to pretend to clean up for you today. Or any day from now on. I’m not going to stuff things in the garage or pantry to make it appear like we live in a clean fantasy world.
Because THAT is pure bs.
We LIVE here. Our children live here and, MAN, are they messy!! They use 15 cups a day and not a single one of them ends up in or near the sink. They wear clothes (how dare they?!!!) and they don’t put them away – even though the laundry basket is right next to their bed. They EAT. A LOT!! And it seems most of the things they eat involve crumbs. They sleep in their beds (well, one of them does) and never think to make it up when they get up in the morning.
But I am tired of the ridiculous thought that as a mom everything in our house and our life has to be perfect.
I’d rather laugh with my kids, go on a walk, help them with homework, have a movie night or do a million other things than worry about whether my house is acceptably clean. It doesn’t matter! It doesn’t make me less of a mom if I’m messy or if I hate to cook or if I can’t wait to go to work every day and get a little break. We’re all doing our best.
So can we cut the judgy mom thing and just accept each other for what we REALLY are??! For me, that real person is a girl who washes her hair once a week and lives on dry shampoo. Who literally climbs through the clothes on the closet floor and searches on all 4’s for the jeans I KNOW are down there. The one who throws the kids’ uniforms in the dryer every morning with a dryer sheet on the wrinkle setting. The one with her hair on top of her head, in joggers and a t-shirt, hoping no one will notice that I also wore the same outfit yesterday. THAT’S the girl I am!
So if you stop by and see shoes scattered all over the floor, dishes piled in the sink, and toys here and there…..just give me a high five, a hug, or an understanding smile.
Because we’re ALL navigating this mom thing and I think it’s safe to say no one has it completely figured out. And I don’t know about you -but I’d rather have the messy, hasn’t-cooked-in-a-month, running-on-fumes mom as a friend any day than the one who seems to have it all together!
