I’m a Sisterhood of Motherhood Partner and I created a Motherhood Survival Kit as part of sponsored post for Similac. #SisterhoodUnite
Motherhood is a tough job and it’s that much tougher when you feel like you’re being judged. Back when I was pregnant with my first, I immersed myself in all things baby. I read books, attended classes and even signed my poor husband up for a Daddy Bootcamp class. I was going to ace parenting and treated it like I was earning another Master’s Degree. As I was in labor, I read a breastfeeding book, cramming for the big “test”. I knew what kind of mom I was going to be and had pretty much every decision from birth – 18 planned out to perfection.
Here’s the thing about parenthood, that I quickly learned, it rarely goes as planned. No book or class in the world could ever fully prepare you for it. Boy was that a rude awakening to my perfectionist, type A personality. Cue the colic, breastfeeding issues, postpartum anxiety and depression. I was pumping around the clock, night and day, and still having to supplement to be able to feed my baby. I barely slept. I struggled big time that first year, trying to be the “perfect” mom (or what I thought was “perfect”).
I remember attending a holiday gathering with my son and another mom made a not so nice comment about me bottle feeding my baby. If only she knew the struggle that we had gone through and the tears that had been shed over not being able to traditionally nurse my son. I left the party early, in tears. For a split second, she made me feel inadequate and like I was a horrible mother. But as I cuddled my son, bottle in hand, I realized that he’s happy and healthy. And that was ALL that mattered.
Motherhood is far (far, far, far) from perfect. It’s sticky and messy and I’m embracing it. To help stop the judgement and mommy wars, I’ll be creating Motherhood Survival Kits as my little random act of kindness. Create a kit for a mommy friend who could use some encouragement or give a kit to the next mom you see dealing with a tantrumming toddler. Tell them that they are a GOOD MOM, we all need to hear those words sometimes. Let’s lift each other up, lend a hand or even just a smile, instead of tear each other down.
To make a Motherhood Survival Kit, print out the free printable tags and attach to a mason jar. You can fill the jar with the following:
Wipes
Suckers
Lip Balm
Tissue
Bandaids
Sewing Kit
Aspirin
Breath Mints
Chocolate
Shout Wipes
Granola Bar
Starbucks Gift Card
Join me and the Duff (Hilary and Haylie) sisters in a Sisterhood of Motherhood. Like Similac’s Sisterhood of Motherhood on Facebook and watch the Real Parents, Real Judgement video on YouTube:
Similac partnered with bloggers such as me for its Sisterhood of Motherhood Program. As part of this program, I received compensation for my time. Similac believes that consumers and bloggers are free to form their own opinions and share them in their own words. Similac’s policies align with WOMMA Ethics Code, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines and social media engagement recommendations.
