If Peter Pan was a Mother…..

Before I was a mother I used to eat chocolate for breakfast chased down with three coffees.

I used to have a cleaning lady because hubby and I both worked full time and we could afford it.

Before I had kids I never used to take pride in my car – I prided myself on the fact I could spend an impromptu night at a friends and have everything I needed already with me.

Now I am a Mother, with being grown-up a vital requisition, I am sometimes afraid I am not good enough, not worthy of being a parent.

Despite the fact that I am willing to sit and give cuddles at any time of the day; carry a tin of magic bandaids in my handbag at all times; hear the sound of a child vomiting at 2am on Christmas Eve, strip the bed and sit with them for half the night and then host a Christmas family lunch;  give panadol suppositories at 3am;  always make sure school bags are checked each day for over-ripe bananas from the previous day,  I STILL have doubts over my parenting attitude at times.

I mean, we never sat the test, let alone passed it. We just had sex and BAM!!! Instant parent!! It scares me a lot of the time just how insanely easy it is to become a parent and just how effing hard it is to be a good one.

Whilst not QUITE in this mothers sphere of the bad parenting above, I still don’t eat breakfast; its just not my thing. I sometimes will stealthily inhale a few tim-tams or toblerone pieces with my morning coffees, but I definitely don’t set a fine example to my kids of how a good family eats a healthy breakfast. I do get the kids some toast or cereal if they would like but it is eaten on the couch in the toyroom whilst I get school lunches ready and have a shower before work.

My house is never tidy. I have done quite a few blog posts on how Martha Stewart I am not, and I am afraid my only reasoning for this is that I simply do not hold it a high priority in my life. Things are kept clean, but not tidy. I have a system, you just cant see it.  Dishes are done every day, just not when it is deemed socially acceptable to do them. The kids always have a clean set of clothes for school but they are never found in their bedroom drawers.  I don’t wash my hands every time I use the loo, but I teach my kids that they should as they are not as careful with their bodily fluids and that we on hands is gross 🙂

My car is still well lived in, but now as well as my stuff in there, there is kids stuff  too. It’s not as if we are ever going to spend an impromptu night anywhere though – I just never have a spare set of hands when we exit the car and I forget to go back after we get inside. I also forget we have a car if I don’t need to use it, so we are definitely not one of those families who allocates an hour every weekend to clean the car. Ooomph.

Whilst I acknowledge that these traits definitely makes me a bad adult, sometimes I feel that they make me a bad parent too.

I should be setting a better example of the right way to be an adult, not just the way that works for me.

I guess some days I feel that I should set a better example – but seriously, I lack motivation.

My kids know I love them and they have full confidence in this. I trust that we are a good family even though we aren’t up there with the acceptable Jones’

This mother is a superstar as far as I am concerned. Parenting at its finest; doing whatever it takes. I would do it in a heartbeat if I had to.

 I also use my dryer instead of hanging the clothes out in summer.

Does anyone else suck at being  a grown-up?

Does it ever make you wonder if it makes you suck as a parent as well?