The tricky thing called guilt....

Guilt seems to go hand in hand with being a mother. You feel guilty that you are not feeding your kid right, they're not getting enough or too much stimulation, that you are making mistakes that will turn your child into an axe wielding maniac when they're older. It's just crazy. I know it is not possible to completely erase guilt from my life but here are some things I absolutely refuse to feel guilty about.


1. Not able to breastfeed. Noah never got the hang of breastfeeding and even though I was pumping constantly, I would only get 1oz at a time. My body just didn't work how it should... So we switched him to formula. I cried for days about this. I was a terrible mom who couldn't even do this one thing for my child. If this was how parenthood was then I will pass. BUT My little guy went from screaming every time he ate to a more happy consistent eater. Sure breast is best and if you are able to then rock on with it. But if you can't, get over it and move on. I did just that with Grace. I tried...she was a great latcher but once again my milk was not consistent This time I said oh well and I didnt fret. I knew she woul be ok...breastfed or not..

2. Being a nazi about your kid's nap. I took a lot of crap from other people about my reluctance to mess with my kids naptime. I was told so many times that they will "learn to deal with sleeping while you're out". Well sorry, no. They didn't learn to deal with it and I ended up with a cranky over tired baby who didn't want to sleep at all. So I got pretty strict about naps. They both took naps in the crib. It didn't happen right away but we ended up with a pretty easy going babies who slept well 95% of the time.

3. Moving my kids out of my room and into their cribs in record time (Noah lasted only 2 days in our room!) Before Noah was born, I planned on keeping him in our room until he was at least three months old. Well at 2 days old I was ready to get him in his own room. He wasn't sleeping well and neither was I. He would wake up to our alarms or just general movement and I would wake to his every noise. It wasn't healthy for either one of us. Many people love co sleeping and do it for years. If it works for your family, awesome. It just wasn't right for us.


4. Needing time away from my kids, This is pretty darn important for my sanity. Even before I had them, I cherished my alone time. It didn't change after they arrived. Granted, it's a lot less common now but it is still necessary. For the first few weeks of both of their lives I thought I had to be around them at every minute and it was really stressing me out. I wasn't taking care of myself like I should have been and things began to suffer. My depressions worsened and it was taking it's toll on my marriage. So I started taking some me time. I went to Target by myself, which is not a good idea if you're on a budget. I went to the spa. Doesn't matter what you do but you have to put you first sometimes.


5. Being a working mom. I will never feel gulty about this. I love my job and not many people can say that. I always tell my co-workers that going to work is like having a day off. I am a much better mommy to my two when I am happy in what I am doing...this includes having a job outside of the home. Those moms that can stay at home all day I admire. I could not do this...I need the adult interaction...the feeling of accomplishment more so then just being a mom.




Guilt is a tricky thing to deal with especially when being a mom...I feel guilt about something everyday but I have realized that its time to let go of some of those things and just enjoy motherhood (without the guilt!)