Bad Mommy! That is me...

It's funny. Most mothers don't want you to know that they yell at their children. Most mothers don't want you to know that there are times they want to hide in the closet until their children get tired of looking -or fall asleep. Most mothers don't want you to know that they do not always feed their children something nutritious at each meal- sometimes McDonald's or Burger King is lunch and dinner -two days in a row. Most mothers don't want you to know that they do not have it all together. Most mothers.

I am honest for the most part when it comes to talking about my life and the things that I do. I do not always tell exactly what I am feeling when things happen. Nor do I always tell what I am thinking when things aren't going so well. And of course, there are times I will leave out certain behaviors -of myself or my children- that would give the impression that I am having problems. That is because I have never wanted to be that Bad Mommy.

I discovered something though. Actually, I think I truly just realized it today and I have been a mother for 13 1/2 years! I realized that all mothers are bad mothers- at least once in their mommyhood. It is the way it is. I think it would be good for all mothers-to-be and mothers to realize this as well. It would save a lot of heartache.

There are times when we are not going to have the answers; we are not going to say the right thing; we are not going to react in the best way. There are so many times when we are going to feel that we do not have it under control and we want to cry along with our children when they throw their temper tantrums.

I was reading over at We Are THAT Family about different things because I enjoy seeing what others are doing. I look for advice, great ideas, things not to do, and just what is going on in the lives of others. I admit I am on the computer (internet) way more than some people would like me to be but I enjoy getting 'together' with others. I live in a small-ish town and do not know but a handful of people. We don't hang out, we don't really socialize much outside of church happenings. I enjoy socializing with others who have something (no matter how little or how much) in common with me. Or even if I would like to have something in common.

Initially I was reading about Kristen's trip to Nairobi with Compassion Bloggers. I almost cried reading her experiences, watching the short video clips and looking at that first photo. I am so happy that God has angels on the Earth. So many people do not have even a portion as much as many of us do. It fills my heart with extreme gladness to read about her experience.

So reading that about Kristen made me curious as to who 'she' is. I clicked on 'about' from the home page on her blog. And that is where I came to realize that we are all a Bad Mommy sometimes. Now, please don't think that I am saying that I think Kristen is a bad mom! Definitely not! I did not see anything out of the ordinary (lol is that funny? since her blog is called 'We Are THAT Family'- you know the ones) for me to say that she is. I'm also not saying that every mother is a bad mother all the time. I am not even saying that being a bad mommy is that bad.

Well, now that that is all clear as mud.... I just found her post 'about' to be so comforting. Kristen makes mention of when she reads of 'heroic mothers' and how that makes her feel normal. Reading others' blogs makes me feel that I am not so bad. Yeah, I am the mother that wants to hide in the closet. Sometimes I just do not have it together. But it is okay. I am okay. We are okay.