Mothering Sunday

The Dailymum has kindly passed on a meme to help me celebrate myself this Mothering Sunday. These are the questions:

Describe Motherhood in three words

Enervating. Enriching. Unglamorous.

Does your experience differ from your mother’s? How?

I didn’t nag her for iPads, Rihanna and Ralph Lauren.  My mother was a 1970s rarity – a full–time career woman. It was my father who fetched us from school and scorched our corned beef fritters. Whereas I wedge my career in amongst school hours and launder infant underwear between deadlines. 

What’s the hardest thing about being a mum?

The guilt and the fear. Guilt that you are not feeding them, schooling them, entertaining and encouraging them as perfectly as they deserve. Fear that calamity will claim them.

What’s the best thing?

When they are silently asleep. Only when I watch them lying trustingly on their pillows, well-fed and well-cleaned, do I feel a fully successful mother - especially if I’ve remembered to wash the sheets.

How has it changed you?

This is where I say that it has made me more patient; more giving; more understanding. But it would be a lie. It has made me irascible. I flee from my children when they bore me. I garden when I should be feeding them and blog when they should be in bed. I skimmed a page of mother quotes in the hope of identifying a quality I could claim, but they were all irritating or vainglorious, except for the Spanish proverb: ‘an ounce of mother is worth a pound of clergy’, which I could use when the Vicar bunks the washing up. But motherhood has developed in me cunning - useful for ensuring pea consumption and for turning a loo roll tube into any farm animal.

 What do you hope for your children?

A courageous mind, a generous spirit and a contented home. With a nice annexe in it for me.

What do you fear for them?

Aimlessness.

What makes it all worthwhile?

My son searching ‘I love my Mummy’ on Amazon.




I'm supposed to tag more mothers, but I'm not sure there's time. Motherventing, Kateonthinice and Katetakes5 have you done this one?

Comments

  1. motherventing16 March 2012 at 11:02

    Not done it. But will. Seems fairly painless. Your answers are v similar to what I'd post, I think. But OBVS I'd mention more gin.

    Thanks m'lady

    ReplyDelete
  2. mummylawyer16 March 2012 at 11:08

    I can relate to so much of what you said in this post. I am such a different mother to the mother I thought I'd be. I suppose I thought I'd be a lot like my own mum but as we're very different people I don't really know why I thought that! Happy mothers' day.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Kate16 March 2012 at 11:45

    Fabulous answers! How utterly gorgeous to find that Amazon search :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Bibsey Mama16 March 2012 at 17:11

    The best thing? Ah yes, it is rather marvellous when they are asleep.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous17 March 2012 at 09:36

      Oh yes. I do love their little sleeping faces.

      Anna, love your answers. You've described motherhood brilliantly.

      Delete
  5. Anonymous16 March 2012 at 17:30

    You should tag http://theperfectbadmummy.wordpress.com/ she would probably have plenty to say!!

    I LOVE your answer to how has it changed you. Completely identify.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Older Mum16 March 2012 at 18:29

    Oh I can so relate to the fear being the neurotic fuzz ball that I am. In the afternoons I stick Little A in front of the TV for a wee while and I blog - that's very naughty

    ReplyDelete
  7. MaidInYorkshire16 March 2012 at 19:05

    You write so very beautifully. That is all.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Mother.wife.me16 March 2012 at 20:06

    Loved this scorchingly honest response to the meme and good to know I'm not the only mother who (sometimes, ahem) forgets to wash the child's bedding

    ReplyDelete
  9. Rachel Selby16 March 2012 at 21:55

    Everything you've written is so true - the fear and the guilt, that they shouldn't grow up aimless, and the cunning especially. Bravo!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Gappy17 March 2012 at 12:47

    Very relatable to answers. Guilt and motherhood go together like beans and toast unfortunately. I think back to the sort of mother I believed I'd be before I actually had children - and how judgemental I was of other peoples parenting - and I laugh and laugh. In a slightly hysterical way like this: HAHAHAHAHAHA.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Jane @ northernmum17 March 2012 at 21:21

    love it! but stop using such big words I have to go look them up and then I feel stoopid x x x

    ReplyDelete
  12. Carole18 March 2012 at 00:59

    Nice post. You might like this poem about mothers. http://caroleschatter.blogspot.co.nz/2011/12/random-quotation-spot.html

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous18 March 2012 at 12:19

    :-) Great celebration! I am all for a granny annexe as well. And someone else who occasionally needs to flee, like me....what a lovely post for another mother to read today...

    ReplyDelete

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