In The Motherhood

There is a new show called In The Motherhood that is so hilarious. Its on NBC on Thursday nights. You have to watch this show if you have kids or are pregnant. It is based on true stories from real mothers. I watch it and think "Oh my gosh, I've done that." or "I say the same things to my kids!" It's just so real and funny. Sherryl Hines is in it and Megan Mullally. I really suggest it. And today Oprah was about motherhood. It has got to be one of my favorite episodes she has ever had. Rarely do people come out and tell the truth about being a mom. This show was all about the down and dirty and how hard it really it. They said "Motherhood is the hardest job on earth, if you're doing it right." There were two women on the show who had written several books about it. Being moms themselves and feeling like the only moms who felt overwhelmed and unhappy, they came out telling their stories about all the things no one told them about being a mom. Like how you might not like your baby right away, or you might hate your husband sometimes, or sex goes out the window, etc. They talk about how before you have kids you think it will be this fulfilling amazing experience when sometimes (and for some people) it isn't. It's hard, and frustrating, and exhausting and sometimes you wonder why in the world you chose to have a baby and sometimes you don't want to do it. I liked a quote that one of the women said "I love being a mother, I just don't like doing it." I feel that way a lot! I have some days when I do not want to be a mom. And I have some days when I love it. It really is a sacrifice of who you are sometimes. You have to reinvent yourself. I think being honest about how you feel really helps. I think so many moms have this list of expectations and when we can't meet all those expectations we feel like failures. Sometimes we feel we are the only ones who feel like its hard. I know I did after my first baby. She was so hard, I felt like I was the only mom in the whole world who felt so overwhelmed and so tired and so sad. I wondered why I didn't like her and why I didn't enjoy any of it. I could not imagine why people would "want" to do this. But thats the problem. I didn't know that it was normal to feel that way. I felt like a failure because I didn't like being a mom right away. It took me a long time to learn that it was suppose to be a blessing. Moms need to support each other so we can feel like other moms go through the same thing. I think a lot of people, including myself, put on a facade and let other people think it's all so glamorous and wonderful, when the truth is, I haven't showered in 2 days, we just got done eating fast food for the 4th time this week, and my kids haven't had a bath in a week! It's tough. I used the word "sometimes" a lot because we don't always feel like it so hard but when we do I think it's important that you are real about it and let other people know its okay to feel that way. Anyway, this Oprah show was really good. It wasn't saying anything negative about what a gift and blessing it is to be a mother, just that it is really hard and not a whole lot of people talk about it. So watch this show, In The Motherhood, its hilarious. You can watch previous episodes on NBC.com.