SA Mom Blog Best Posts for July – Roundup and Linky

There are some fantastic SA mom blog writers out there, and I wouldn’t presume to be able to summarise their writings in a month. However, I do want to start somewhere, and if this is to be an active community, readers will be able to add their favourite posts for this month in the comments (other people’s posts) or as a linky (your own favourite post for the month). So let’s make this a joint effort!

 

Some interesting posts this month:

I think that we are becoming aware of how stressful being a mom is, not only for all the decisions you feel you must make but also along with that comes the pressure of being judged for them. The take away for bloggers, however, is to be honest about that struggle.

Melinda, from Dairy of a white mother raising a black baby, put it rather well in this post (F@ckitall) where she shows how confusing it all is: In the last few days I have read an article based around self-soothing and how bad it is for babies. I’ve also read an article written by a UK nanny explaining how parenting is in crisis because we don’t let babies learn to self-soothe. She goes on to show how all these different sides to an argument extends to diet and parenting. “Live and let live” she says.

I also liked this post from Kathryn of Becoming You. She aptly described the frustrations and the joys of being a mom. I love that I get to be called Mom. I don’t like being called Mom 1000 times a day. She also had some awesome pictures of moms and children – touching and connecting.

Sharon also is feeling a pressure of being a working mom. In this post she says Being a working mom is hard. It requires sacrifice. It requires juggling so many balls that from time to time, they do all drop. It requires that I fail at times.

Is it all too much? Keri from Midlands Musing wrote how all the instructions we receive (Be grateful. Change the world. Help others. Buy this, buy that. Drive that car. Covet that couch, that marriage, that body. Save, save, save. Cut out sugar. Drink full-cream milk. Reproduce yourself, twice over) are literally pushing her to run away from it all.

And, more importantly, have we lost who we are? At BlogShareConnect, the question is posed: Is Honesty Dead? The internet, more specifically social media, has created a generation of people who are trying desperately to keep up with the Jones and in doing so they are no longer living authentically or honestly despite what you keep telling yourself.

Perhaps the answer is to ground ourselves or else we really will go nuts. I liked this post from Mommy-at-last.

And two days of just resting and ignoring the emails and reading has restored some of my energy. And maybe that’s part of why these two friends are so on my mind, they both are so good at reminding me to be gentle with myself and at showing me a way to do it.  I think I need to stop thinking about it and actually go to the Garden Centre and buy some pots and some herbs and get my (and the kids) fingers stuck into the soil, touch the earthiness that reminds me to ground myself a little.

Some bloggers added politics to the mix this month. Rashieda Uncut wrote about the violence in Gaza, praying for peace. Belinda from Making Mountains wrote about the Malaysian airplane disaster, asking if empathy for these people really helps.

For just appreciating the age your kids are at, I loved this post from Namreen. I could not wait for the day you grew up, but now I realise that growing up means leaving my side and figuring things out for yourself…and I’m not quite ready for that!

I also just liked this post from Laura at Harassed Mom of appreciating the moment looking outside her window.

And for choosing to make the most of her day dispite being sleep deprived, read this post from Mandimadeit.

For humour, I just loved this piece from Skimming Stones on marriage and failed telepathy. I think we can all relate to our other half expecting us to just “know” what they want. I also liked this one from Just Ella Bella on the wonders of motherhood.

Because I often

– Wonder when I will get to decide my own bedtime again
– Wonder if I will ever get my body back
– Wonder what the mystery stain on my clothes are

And, an article worth reading to encourage you as a mom blogger: According to this, moms spending power of $2.4 trillion annually in the United States alone … today’s moms are a key target audience that shouldn’t be ignored by marketers.

So.. what did I miss? Add your post to the inlinkz link up! Or put a comment about a post that moved you. And tweet about it so that others can join in too! Please make sure that you comment on at least three other people’s posts.