Lately I start a lot of thoughts/questions this way. Kinda sad, kinda scary, kinda pathetic. But seriously. Pinterest will be the end of me for sure. Nothing has ever made me feel less valuable, competent, or adequate in my life. I thought I was pretty creative, artistic, clever. But not like these bitches on Pinterest. I thought I was cute coming up with a camping theme for my 3 year old's birthday party. So I made the fatal mistake of Googling "camping theme." Did I mention I hate Google as well? Google is the reason behind every single pregnancy freakout I ever had. Notice I do not credit Google for the
answers.
Hmm.
Anyway, not only has the camping theme been done, it's been elevated to an art form. I wrote my son a book for his first birthday and themed the party around that. At the time I thought that was pretty bad-ass. But there were no themed napkins, no signage, no cake pops [
I didn't even know what the hell a cake pop was until 2011! Yikes!] I didn't make favors, but since when does a birthday party follow the template for a wedding reception? I don't mean to sound like a bad hostess, but add it to my resume I guess.
Was I raised by wolves??! I don't even think I own a trivet.
- Bad Mother, My Household 2009-Present
- responsible for half-assing the birthday parties
- extremely skilled at excuses and researching Pinterest
- Bad Hostess, My Household 2005-Present
- forgets favors
- takes forever to write thank you notes
So I ask, with all honesty, is all of this stuff required to be a good mom? My excuse is work. I work full time and have 2 children under 3, so I struggle for the mental capacity for such intense project planning. Don't even get me started on the time and money involved. Who's going to watch my kids while I plan their party? And doesn't that seem a little counter-intuitive to my wanting to spend more time with them? Wouldn't they rather have
me than color-matched table-cloths and themed napkins? How is it this doesn't seem to be an issue for other moms I know? Do they not struggle with this dilemma too? They all seem to raise well-adjusted kids
and have uber-themed birthday parties and dinner on the table by 6 o'clock.
Am I?
