Dear negative parenting articles,
My kids are awesome. Please stop trying to convince me that they are anything else.
The other day we were playing in the small inflatable pool in our backyard when my son noticed a tiny green grasshopper. He got out of the pool, scooped up his new friend and declared that we would all call him “Jumpy.”
For the next few days, every time we went outside, my kids would shout, “Jumpy is back!” It’s funny how Jumpy looked a little differently each day that he came to visit. (Hint: He wasn’t the same grasshopper.)
But seriously, my kids are at fun ages – 3 and 4. They are silly and funny and so curious about the world. I love watching them grow and learn. I love making memories with them. I love the joy that they have brought to our home.
Yes, life changed when they were born. No, my body will never look the same, and now I must make even more efforts to maintain a healthy marriage. But my children are not an inconvenience. And honestly, I’m tired of reading all of the posts that try to convince me that they are.
There seem to be a lot of those posts.
Posts by parents complaining about how terrible life is after having children. Posts that leave me feeling worse about my life, my kids, and myself as a mother. Posts that paint parenthood and childhood as things to be escaped or simply survived.
Sure the articles are usually witty and some are pretty funny. And many of us can even relate to them or have shared them in the past.
But honestly?
Parents don’t need one more post telling us that we’re doing it all wrong, or reminding us of how exhausted we are. We don’t need one more article complaining about how hard parenting is or trying to convince us that our kids have ruined our lives.
What we need? Is hope.
Parents need someone to breathe life into the scared places of our hearts. We need someone to remind us that our fears, worries and anxieties are perfectly normal.
We need someone to remind us that our best is good enough and that tomorrow is a new day.
We need someone to remind us that we are not alone in this parenting thing, and while there are days, weeks, entire years that seem overwhelming, they will not last forever.
So, I will be the one to say it.
We are done listening to all the negativity.
***
So to every parent reading, you’re doing a great job! This parenting thing is no joke, but you’re going to make it. We all knew the moment that we brought our babies home from the hospital that that there would be some days harder than others, but those sweet babies are life’s greatest gifts. And they are worth every single moment of uncertainty. Look around. This page is filled with hope. It is dedicated to encouraging the hearts of women and parents. It is a safe place to remember that being a parent is one of life’s greatest blessings.
My kids are awesome, and yours are too. And I hope you won’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
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