Monday, June 25, 2012

Teen Mom

We had change jars all over the house. I have great memories of pouring them out on the floor and rolling them up to take to the bank to cash in. We would get dressed up and drive down to the bank and get our money. I’m pretty sure I should have gotten a bigger cut for all of the work I put into it now that I’m thinking about it.  Dad used to tell me that he knew I was different from Carol and Andrea because whenever I would ask for change I would ask for the “shiny coins” when he would try to just give me the pennies. My point here is, I’m not one of those girls that played house, pretended their dolls were babies, and couldn’t wait to be a mom. I played banker.

Four weeks before my due date I found myself panicking about becoming a mother. I was feeling woefully under qualified so to cheer myself up one morning I decided to settle in for a Teen Mom marathon on Netflix. (Keep in mind I was on bed rest and miserable at this point). No matter how scared I was about becoming a mama, at least I was going to be a better mom than them, right? I wasn’t going to beat Andrea in the mom department but by golly I was going to beat someone (at what point do I worry about my competitiveness?).

Yesterday, I was really picking on myself.   It went something like this:
• Pregnancy: Epic Fail.
• Career: On hold.
• Labor: 12 hours of labor before a c-section – Fail.
• Newborn: Success. He was pretty perfect for 3 months.
• Breastfeeding: Whew – a lot harder than people think.  I only made it 4 months. Fail.
• Sleep Training: Fail. Stupid acid reflux.

You get the picture. In the last week, we are finally seeing some progress with little man’s flux but now we are getting into teething territory and both of us caught a stomach virus this weekend (it's too soon to talk about the 48 hours of misery the Hurt household dealt with).  So to cheer myself up, I decided to watch an episode of Teen Mom. I literally laughed out loud. I’ve been married for nearly five years, have a master’s degree, own a house and a car, and have a loving family. Of course I’m in a better situation than the Teen Mom’s. Of course I should be a better mom than them. It’s like asking a woman to hit from the men’s tees, but still. A win is a win. It’s ridiculous what will make me feel better.

(30 year old) Teen Mom

4 comments:

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    1. a. teen moms wouldn't know the difference between a job and a career.
      b. 4 months is a LOOOONG time, mark that as a win.
      c. teddy is a lucky little man to have you as his mama.

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  2. Teddy is a WINNER because he got you guys as parents! I'm flattered that you use me as a reference for what a good mom is :). Can't think of a better compliment!!!!!

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  3. Surviving that pregnancy: major success
    4 months????: absolute champion
    12 hours of labor and then enduring csection recovery??? You should win a freaking gold medal.
    Don't pick on yourself. You are amazing.

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