A Good Mom?

Do you ever wonder if you are a good mom? I ask myself that question every day. What pressure! What resposibility! To think that you are molding your children's future and their little minds. What if you make a misteake? Will they talk about it in therapy when the're 30? Sometimes it feels like the weight of the world is on my shoulders.

The hardest part of parenting for me, is dealing with the guilt and the worry. I worry about things that won't even take part in their lives for another 16 years or so. I feel guilty that I did not give them what they wanted or needed. I feel guilty that I may have hurt their self-esteem in some way.

I think venting to other adults and having a sense of accountability for your actions and thoughts, is essential to being a good mom/parent. I make my husband my accountability partner. I tell him when I think I did a horrible job of being a mom one day, and a great job of being a mom the next. I don't keep any secrets about things that I said to my children, that may creep up to bite me in the butt at a later date. My kids love to repeat every new thing that comes out of my mouth!

A good behavior chart keeps my 3 kids in check. I give stars for good behavior. Consequently, I take stars away for bad behavior. I am learning not to be negative, and try to give most situations a positive spin. It's hard to do. Sometimes you just have to walk away and take a deep breath.

If I can get through a day having had a shower, all the kids ate, are clean, and had a decent bowel movement, the floor is not a complete disaster, and they told me they love me at least once.....then I can lay my head on the pillow at night and know that I was a good mom today.

Thanks for letting me vent,
Jeannie