I spent a lovely hour wallowing in a bubble bath this afternoon, while the babies napped, goopy face pack on, glass of rose in one hand, book in the other. Since entering this new world of motherhood over three years ago, I've found myself drawn more to non fiction; books about women, society, work, motherhood. Maybe I'm just trying to find the perfect thesis to validate my choices. Today I was reading "Mommy wars" an anthology of essays edited by Leslie Morgan Steiner, who blogs at mommytrackd. Rather than being about mothers at war with one another, it is tales of individual women and their families, sharing their struggles and their solutions, instead of judging each other. Reading all these different perspectives brought out my introspective side, and I started to wonder, what kind of mother am I?
I"m the kind of mum who makes organic chicken stew from scratch and freezes in in batches to be taken to preschool for lunch.
I'm the kind of mum who feeds her kids microwaved frozen meatballs, mixed veg and spaghetti O's.
I"m the kind of mum who buys foam sheets, glitter and glue and spends the afternoon doing art projects
I'm the kind of mother who blogs about being a mum while her three year old is bouncing on the couch trying to get her attention.
I'm the kind of mum who gets down on the floor to be a human climbing frame for a toddler, dances to the Wiggles, and pretends to be Ariel. Or Aurora. Or Dora.
I'm the kind of mum who parks the kids in front of a Dora DVD so that I can read my book about parenting in peace.
I'm the kind of mum who is on the preschool steering committee, takes time off work to read to the class, gives gifts to the teachers, and spends a lazy day at home when one of the kids is just a little under the weather.
I'm the kind of mum who can only seem to remember show and tell day occasionally, has no spare clothes in my kids locker for accidents, so they come home in trousers saying "school pants" in red marker, and takes them to daycare dosed up with tylenol rather than stay home and miss a crucial meeting
I'm a mum who works full time outside the home at a job I love, and am so grateful to the myriad, nameless, forgotten working women of the past who paved the way for those of us who choose to work and mother.
I'm a mum who is fortunate enough to have fantastic daycare, a supportive employer, and a wonderful husband, and wishes that all women had these options.
I'm the mother of the most gorgeous, smartest and funniest little girl and boy in the world.
