Growing up, this book was one of our favorites. It tells the story of a Mama Elephant just trying desperately to get out the door to a dinner party - her one chance each year. She has three small elephant children who seem to be in conspiracy against her. She finally emerges, dressed beautifully, kisses the children goodbye with their grandmother and the last illustration shows the back of her dress covered in paint from the paint kit in which she had unknowingly just sat.
It's funny how you can look back on something and really understand for the first time. I melted down last week. Bad. Like fetal position on the bathroom floor bad. Motherhood meltdown. I remembered that scene in Divine Secrets of the YaYA Sisterhoood when the bipolar Mom just drives away one day and rents a hotel room to sit in the bathtub and drink champagne. I wanted to be her. At least she had a goal and executed it.
After some intervention from a sweet husband (in the form of donuts and a thick magazine with lots of mascara advertisements) and brunch with some dear friends in which I confessed, without trying to be dramatic of course, "I am losing my soul!" I took a deep breath and started putting the pieces back together. I informed Sophia that I was the Mother and she was the Child and I would no longer be sleeping in her room with her (long story - thus the meltdown) after screaming and crying she recovered and informed me that Diego would be sleeping with her (that's for another blog post).
Raising children is the hardest thing I have ever done but it is no doubt the most important. And its full of such amazing moments but in the midst of those moments...it's incredible work. I love to read blogs of mom-idols who somehow can make it all look so beautiful. The lack of pictures on this blog lately belies the two truths 1.I still can't find the cord to my camera and 2.it's not been pretty lately. But my recent hope is that my idea of beauty will be transformed. And that I will slow down and be grateful enough to enjoy it. Tonight Sophia thanked God for her bath - she took two today. There is beauty everywhere...
4 comments:
Nina, I LOVE your blogs! Maybe one day when we have children, thanks to you, it will be easier to "pick up the pieces" b/c I will know I'm not the only one :)
Thank you for sharing, Nina! It's refreshing to get a real view of motherhood told with so much insight and eloquence. You are great!!
I adore your writing! You should compile your blog posts and write a memoir of motherhood someday :)
Oh Nina...you are my mom-idol! If I could have picked another major in college it would have been How To Be Like Nina because you are such a great mom. I hope with as many times as you have listened to me I could do the same for you whenever you need to vent :) Hope to visit again this summer!
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