A mental shake

I am getting a little fed up with mummy blogs at the moment. I am aware that this is a super hypocritical thing to say considering this is a mummy blog. But I find that often posts can be very self-indulgent. You know, 'you're doing great', 'don't worry about cleaning', 'being a mum is the hardest job', 'value time with your kids above all else', 'being a mum is SO important'. Obviously these are all true statements and there have been times when I have had a truly awful day and have really needed to hear some encouragement. These blogs regularly make me cry because I am so happy others sympathise with me.

But I don't think these messages are always helpful. Or there should be a time when you move beyond needing to repeat these over and over. They can be a lot about surviving and coping with your situation. This can give you a very skewed view of the world. My situation is a lot harder than other people's and I deserve rest and I deserve to feel sorry for myself. Do you recognise any of those feelings? Maybe I'm just a lot more selfish than other people but I can sink into these feelings often. When I find the children hard going, I become very self-obsessed and selfish. I don't have time for other people's problems. I don't have time for God and his plans for me.

An example would be Saturdays like today. J works every other Saturday and this would usually be a time when I would spend time with my parents. But I can't because they are in India now. I normally would mooch around feeling lonely and sorry for myself; 'everyone else is with their families, blah blah, feel sorry for me.' I might even write a mournful Facebook status!

Today I decided things would be different. We packed up our rain coats and hats and headed to Wisley (as I always say, this is one of my favourite places). And we had a lovely day. It was difficult looking after both children by myself, especially in the butterfly display as we weren't allowed to take the buggy in. But I coped! I really enjoyed the company of the children and I treated myself to a coffee and cake :)

So, I will read those mummy blog posts when I am feeling like I've had a hard day and need someone to say it's ok to find things hard and feel down. But then I will forget the self-pity and give myself a mental shake. I will make the effort to chat to other people and find out their difficulties. I will remember that us mums do not have the monopoly on feeling tired and working hard. I will remember that as much as my children are important and God has given me the mission of raising them, He has also set me another mission of spreading his Gospel and being there for others.