In the Trash

So last weekend was Caroline's 4th birthday party. It was a great party and we had a ton of fun. But after the party was over, I came to a huge realization. The realization was that our society has, through the use of Pinterest, Facebook, and super-mommy blogs, made all of us moms feel somehow "not good enough." When I look at all of these sources of "ideas" I think that I should be participating and accomplishing what "all the other moms" are doing. I go to other people's super nice, over-decorated, freshly maid-dusted houses and feel that I have to somehow keep up and do the same. Their kid's birthday was super great and expensive, so my kid's should be too, right? So I worked my butt off for 4 weeks (yes, 4) to get all of her party stuff ready and "just right." But guess what? When the party was over, do you know where those super-cute, time-consuming, hand-wrapped, hand-tied, pink lemonade bottles that I spent several hours preparing went? In the trash. Guess where the cute table cloths that were hand-tied to the tables went? In the trash. Guess where her hand-cut, hand-stamped invitations went? In the trash. Guess where the tissue paper flowers went? Well, they're actually still hanging because I'm lazy, but they'll eventually make it to the trash too. All that time and hard-work? In the trash. Did the kids give one flippin' rip about those invitations, bottles, tables, or flowers? Nope. And neither did Caroline. However, I felt that her party wouldn't be cute enough, good enough, or fun enough without them. Was everything super-cute? Yep, if I do say so myself!(I must add that all the adults recognized and complimented my efforts, which I greatly appreciated. Thank you :-D) Her party was great, but not because of her handmade decorations and cutesy snacks. It was great because they played together, they laughed together, they created pictures and crafts together. And mostly because she had her family that she loves, her friends that she adores, and we all came together to celebrate her. And that was just enough. So I'm over it. I'm over all these sites and social media that make moms feel like failures at all things domestic. I'm not worrying anymore about what other people are doing, how their playrooms are organized on Pinterest, how their sandwiches look like flowers or some other stupid shape. I don't care if they have nifty little ways of creating weekly menus on chalk-painted magnetic boards with ribbon wrapped clothes pins. I'll stick with Wal mart shelving units, triangle sandwiches, and Post-It notes on my fridge. Because frankly, while those moms are creating all those cool little things..... their kids are doing something without them. They're playing alone, watching tv alone, doing something withOUT their mommy. They're wasting valuable time that could be spent in such a better way - at the park, at a museum, doing a puzzle, or just playing in the backyard together. So what's the point? Children want to be loved, they want to spend time with you, they want to feel important. The snuggles that I get from C every morning when she wakes up are well worth the extra 15 minutes that we lay in the bed. I should probably get up earlier and get more things accomplished, but in another 4 months, those days are over for good. Her school days will begin and won't stop for 12 more years. And then my little girl is gone..... So I'll take all the time with her I can get. Maybe while she's at school I can play super-mom and make that super cool menu board or bake super-duper extra special cupcakes to take to the class party. But until then, if you want to come to my house, you're welcome. It won't be a disaster, because I'm way too OCD for that. But just don't expect Martha Stewart when you walk in. There will be dust on the shelves (from Wal-mart), probably toys in the floor, and some dishes in the sink. And that doesn't make me a bad mom. I'll still make the occasional hair-bow, or do some cute little holiday project here and there. But I'll try not to get caught up in the things that don't really matter and only take away precious family time. So take a step back from your life and see what's important. Are you doing what really matters? Or are you worried about the little things that are just gonna end up in the trash.....?