Mommy Culture- Day 13

There are so many mommy bloggers and influencers, Facebook mom groups, endless amounts of mommy literature, mommy memes, and merch, and TikTok videos and on and on and on...

And I am just not into any of it.

I have been told to read countless books- Moms on Call, Baby Lead Weening, Bringing Up Bebe

I've been told to follow endless Instagram accounts- Taking Cara Babies, Kids Eat in Color, Mom Brain Therapist

And I just can't get into it. I just can't. 

I have so much interested in my son, but so little interest in mommy culture. 

I read a book on toddlerhood- Making the Terrible Two's Not So Terrible, and it was like pulling teeth trying to get through it. I supposed I learned a few things from it, but it will be a long time before I read another parenting book. 

 My mom wanted me to watch an InstaStory all about how to get kids to eat vegetables and it could not hold my interest for even a few seconds. All I had to do was turn the volume up on my phone and watch this woman, but I simply could not give it one iota of my attention. 

During the snow storm, I asked Facebook friends for some indoor activity ideas. I was given so many great, inexpensive ideas, and I thought, "Wow, some moms out there just LOVE doing this. They really have a passion for momhood...and I'm not one of them."

I'm a working mom, a 7th grade English teacher to be specific. Monday through Friday, Henry wakes me up around 5:30-6:00 and we snuggle until he is ready to eat breakfast, usually 6:30. Andrew takes over from there, making him breakfast, getting him dressed, playing with him, and taking him to school, all while I get ready for work. 

I leave the house at 7:30, work all day, and then pick Henry up at 4:45. We get home, he has a snack while standing on his learning tower, and I start to make dinner. We usually eat dinner between 5:45-6;00, then head upstairs as a family to play. We read books, play with cars, color, or play kitchen. Then do bath time, brush teeth, meds, jammies, snuggle, read more books, then Henry goes to bed around 7:00-7:30.  Then Andrew and I have time to talk, be intimate, watch tv, read, shower, and take care of ourselves and our relationship.

Within those hours, I have plenty of time to pursue my interests. For instance, when my students sit and silently read, I do that with them. When I have an off period with no meetings, no grading, no copies to make, I am able to sit and scroll through Pinterest, read CNN headlines, and make funny games for my LOTR Book Club. So this is not to say I don't have plenty of time to pursue any interests that make me a whole, complete, and dynamic person. 

It's just that mommy literature and parenting advice and all that surrounds it doesn't interest me. And I guess, if I am being honest with myself, I wish it did. 

I love my son, I love going on walks with him, I love reading books, and playing hide and seek. I love wrestling him, I love watching him explore and learn and grow. I just don't love reading about it.