Much Momma Love

I just want to thank all of you for all the positive responses I got about the "Mom Enough" post. All of your comments were totally appreciated.

I think this was my most read post and I want to thank those of you who reposted the link. I am happy to say I got many new "likes" and hopefully some new readers.

I even had people tweet about it! Still working out how that whole Twitter thing works.

I started this blog in an attempt to not only chronicle the lives of my children, but as a tool for me to try and navigate motherhood. I mean who knew that QT would basically choose to attachment child himself to me? I was an attachment parent by default because that is what worked for him. I will say it was a glorious day once he found his way into his own crib and started sleeping through the night though!

I know that each of us does things differently. And I am all for doing what gets you through the day. I am just glad that there are other moms out there who recognize that supporting one another is better than trying to tear each other down.

After that post went up, I started thinking about more moms that I know and that I didn't include on my list, moms with kids with special needs or medical issues, moms who work two jobs, and those who are so crafty it pains me to compare my paltry Pinterest projects to theirs.

I hope all my readers can recognize a little bit of themselves in this blog and know that they are not alone out there.

Having said that, I will still use this as a forum to call out any crazy celebrity parenting choices from baby name choice to infant mohawks. I know we shouldn't judge, but they have personal trainers and put their kids in like $45 onesies, and I am just grateful for ten minutes of me time and a 40% off sale at Carters.

Mom Enough

I have to chime in here with my opinion of the Time magazine cover.

I am not going to comment on the article though, since I can't access it online and because I have yet to see it on the newsstands.

What I really want to discuss is not attachment parenting, which is what the Time article focuses on and which is only one way to raise a child. I don't want to debate the breastfeeding vs. non-breastfeeding or the pros/cons of extended breastfeeding.

I don't even want to talk about the "shocking" cover image that was designed to be so and has clearly hit a nerve with a lot of people.

What I want to focus on is the headline: "Are You Mom Enough?"

Look, I understand that Time wants to sell magazines, and putting an image of a woman breastfeeding her three-year-old on the cover is one way to do it. But why the title "Are You Mom Enough?" Without even opening up the magazine it already asks the question that if I am not doing what the mothers in this article are doing than somehow I am not good enough.

Why is it that there seems to be this need to pit mothers against each other? Isn't it hard enough to create, birth, and raise a human being without feeling like you are doing it "wrong"?

I know mothers who do attachment parent, who are breastfeeding beyond the first year. I know mothers who never even considered breastfeeding. I know moms who let their kids sleep in their bed and who have had their kids in a crib since their first day home from the hospital. I know mothers who have had c-sections, drug-free births, hours of labor, no labor pains at all, and one mother who gave birth on the side of the road. I know moms who had big babies and some so small it makes your heart hurt. I know a mother who spent weeks in the hospital on bed rest and a mother who battled cancer during her pregnancy. I know moms of twins, moms with three or more kids and those who were "one and done." I know single moms, stay-at-home moms, mothers who work part-time and mothers who work full-time. I know mothers who dealt with infertility and those who were "surprised" by a pregnancy (OK that last one was me!). I know mothers who make their own baby food and those who don't. I know moms that home school and those that can't wait to get their kid on the bus.

I also know that each one of these women do their best to make sure that their children are happy, healthy, and most importantly know they are loved.

There are so many other issues that we should be focusing on as mothers. Instead of battling each other on the "right" way to mother our children, we should be directing our efforts towards finding a way to help all mothers navigate the work/home balance (maternity leave, career stability, affordable day care) and make sure there is support out there for those who are struggling.

Could you imagine what we could accomplish if we just had more energy?

So Time Magazine, bravo on creating controversy. You showed a woman on the cover of a magazine with her boob out. You tried to get me to believe that one way of parenting style is the only way.

I think about what I do every day and how I try to navigate my own children through this crazy world. You want to ask me if I am mom enough?

You bet your ass I am.