Monday, February 12, 2018

Real World Mama Living and Loving

You know those Mama posts as you are scrolling through Instagram or Facebook, those “ I’m gonna stand here with my thousand dollar outfit and my kids looking like they just came out of a magazine gleefully smiling away or kissing mama’s cheek” posts. The posts that make you think “I’d like to be that mama someday! I need a new wardrobe, I’d love to look that good! My kids need new clothes, or why can’t my kids be that sweet or calm?”
Well ladies, I wish all that! I’m guilty of looking at their clothes and thinking “how pretty do they look?! And how fit!” But reality sets in and I realize I’m the normal mom over here budgeting for clothes, food, and just everyday needs. I throw on the same pair of jeans I have had for several years that still fit comfortably around my flabby skinned mama belly, that $8 old navy shirt that doesn’t cling to that said mama belly flab, and a belt so my jeans don’t fall off while picking up the toys sprawled across my floor for the upteenth time today. I put on makeup to feel like I am alive after a night of little to no sleep. I have gotten a 3min shower and I dream about a long soak in a tub. I live on little money and a heck of a lot of Faith. So yes, sometimes I wish I were that well put together mama in front of that white super clean backdrop or in that gorgeously laid out nursery, but for reals, would I trade this life for that? Heck No! I’m sure it’s not all rosey as it looks over there and those kids had 5 or 6 tantrums before or after that picture was taken.  In this very social media age today, it’s easy for us mamas to compare ourselves to other moms. I have to remind myself all the time that God has so blessed me with the life I have, I have clothes on my back, shoes on my feet, my kids are well fed  and healthy and so am I, we are able to pay our bills, we have a gorgeous apt that we live in, wonderful neighbors, clean water, and wonderful kiddos. We may have debts, we may not be able to afford the finest clothes, the fancy foods, the gorgeous house, a nice date nigh, BUT we do have so much more than so many other families have. I am reminded of the trips I took to Guatemala not so many years ago and how they live in the Mayan jungles. I remember walking into one home doing hut to hut evangelism and their baby was hanging in a blanket ON THEIR WALL <---That was the baby’s crib. It was dark inside with mud floors and it was all one big open room with just hammocks hanging from the beams above. This is their life and I’m over here dreaming about new clothes and my kids looking like models in pictures?
I say all this because I’m being honest about the mama life. Not all of us can have the Joanna Gaines dream home or the super stylish kiddos or the hip mama wardrobe, but what we can have are the real life moments with our kids and teach them what’s important in life. They can see a real mama who loves them beyond measure and a Dad who loves them so much he works so very hard to make ends meet. God gives us mana for today. So, when you are dreaming of being that super sexy stylish mama, just know you are beyond perfect the way that you are. Your kids will remember what all you did, not what all you wore. We are all mamas raising our kids to be the best they can be! I’m not saying let yourself go, I’m just saying it’s ok if you have a Walmart or second hand wardrobe. Don’t let the world beat you down. There are far more important things in this life, And you are raising them. 

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