The Perks of Motherhood

I love my traditional Mother’s Day scenario… the chaos as my kids prepare me breakfast in bed while I yell from my room for them to quit fighting. The silliness of getting hand-picked azaleas from my neighbor’s front yard that are covered in microscopic red bugs; and precious, hand-made cards that left a trail of glitter from one end of the house to another. It really never gets old.

The gifts, as well as the breakfast, have gotten better over the years. Coupons for free hugs have graduated to fun jewelry hand-selected by my very discerning daughters and a bowl of cereal has progressed to Belgian waffles (not the frozen ones either).

This year I’m adding a new twist to the ritual. I’ve been reflecting lately on what an honor and a gift it is to be a mother to my two children. They make me a better person.

Not necessarily because they demand it, they don’t. It just goes with having a desire to do the job well. If you want to raise good children that hopefully become well-adjusted, happy adults, then you have to model and teach them the core values you hold true. In other words, my children make me “step-up my game".

I am gladly taking the yearly recognition this Sunday but adding to that a purposeful acknowledgement of how my job as a mother makes me strive to be someone I like. Of course a motherhood perk is the unfathomable amount of love both given and received, but it’s actually more than that (if you can imagine). I want my children to be healthy, kind, compassionate and fearless. In order for that to happen, I have to teach them how to be all those things.

Therefore, my job as a mother requires constant learning and training on how to be the solid, well-rounded person that I eventually want my children to be. What a gift! I get fed with love just for working on being a healthy, kind, compassionate and fearless individual.

So, as I am showered with attention and affection this Mother’s Day, I will secretly hold in my heart the knowledge that the real gift isn’t the necklace and Belgian waffles; but the job of motherhood, itself.

The Motherhood Transition

As I move well into my 3^rd pregnancy, it’s amazing to think about all the changes that have happened around me, and inside of me, over the past four years.  I started off as a career-driven young woman who was petrified to have children.  The labor process was especially frightful to me, and on top of that, seeing how much time and energy children took—it was one more reason to doubt I would want any of my own.  Apparently it was in the stars for me anyway, and now that I have 2 sweet angels of my own, I wouldn’t change it for the world. The nurturing and love for your child is something greater than you could ever believe.  They can brighten my day in an instant through a simple smile, hug or funny phrase.

Let’s be real though, it’s not all sunshine and roses.  The body changes and schedule changes alone can throw anyone for a loop.  Change happens in areas you never even imagined. The guilt you can also feel if your child is sick or hurt can be hard to bare. Although reality tries to reason with your thoughts to help you understand you do not have complete control over everything, it rarely wins the battle.  The transition back to work, what you feed your child, how you discipline, how you interact with your spouse in front of your children…so many new challenges and the strongest desire not to fail you’ve ever felt… all happening at the same time. 

For many women, the greatest struggle with motherhood is learning how to create the right balance between providing care for your kids and care for yourself.  Whether you have young children like me, you’re facing those challenging teenage years, or your children have grown and started their adult lives, I know you can relate to this challenge of self care. With that in mind, I am excited to share with you the anticipation of a new workshop we are developing for 2012.  The workshop will be for Mother’s to unite together to discover and practice self care. Developed in collaboration of myself and H3’s Director of Behavioral Management, Lisette Volz (mother of 2), this workshop will feature group support around issues like Wearing all the Hats, and Wearing them Well, A Mother’s Body Image, Finding Peace in Hectic Schedules, Fitting in Fitness, Life’s Cycles: Hands-on Cooking, and the much needed Girls’ Night.  Whether it’s baby weight, emotional weight, the pressure of time or managing the total load, we are planning a weekend focused on health, fitness and relaxation that any Mother needs.

I am very excited for the opportunity to work with this woman’s only workshop.  If you also share an interest in this topic, please share any ideas or areas you would like to see addressed!  Stay tuned for dates and more information for this workshop coming in Fall 2012!

**Official Workshop dates have not been set. If interested, please call (800) 292-2440 to speak with a program consultant.

 

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