Little motherhood joys in February
As a mom in Switzerland, I love reading the mal ehrlich blog (and I’m honoured to be part of the expert pool of their new membership). They recently posted on Instagram that they received feedback that mothers would like to hear more positive stories on motherhood - and not always the challenges that parents and mothers in particular are facing.
It made me realise that while I do struggle with the society that we live in on different levels as a mother, it is easy to forget the joys that motherhood does bring us. As February is nearly over, I thought it was a good opportunity to take a moment and reflect back on the moments with my children that brought me joy in the past month.
Our first skiing holidays as a family. I don’t ski and in the 8 years we were together before having children, my husband and I only went on one skiing trip together - in February 2019, 6 weeks before our first son was born. It was definitely not the time for me to start learning to ski - and while I’m still not entirely convinced that I will learn at some point, I really enjoyed this week up in the mountains for so many reasons. We had amazing weather and it made me realise how much I had missed spending time outside and in the sun in the past, mostly grey winter months. I had so much fun with our youngest sledging and going on a hike with lamas, while my husband and our older son enjoyed the slopes. It felt like a chill holiday because our planning was similar each day, with skiing school in the morning and afternoon for our older son, an activity in the morning with the younger one and some pool time before dinner. This holiday allowed me to discover the joy of being in the mountains - a joy that I wouldn’t have discovered without children and without our oldest son developing a love for skiing.
Buying my 5-year-old his first (simplified) book to read on his own. As a child, I loved reading and I remember spending afternoons at the library either with my mother on the weekends or, as I grew older, on my own on school-free afternoons while my parents were working. I would wake up and read for 15-30 minutes before getting ready for school - a practice that still today (though rare) is sure to give me a good start into the day. So watching my 5-year-old become interested in learning the letters and then starting to read words without us prompting him much made me really proud - and reminded me that sometimes in life, we just need to trust and let our kids move at their own pace.
A mother-son solo trip to Luxembourg: I’ve been wanting to plan a yearly solo trip with each child since my oldest son turned one - and then covid hit, followed by a second pregnancy and life. This year, I’d like to spend a bit more time in Luxembourg, with my parents and friends, so it felt like a good opportunity to turn that into a little mother-son trip during the school holidays. While the baby and toddler years also have their joys, the dynamics are very different when I’m alone with my older son who will turn 6 next month. I feel like there is more space for me, we can do activities that we both enjoy, like playing cards, meals out are less stressful and he can play some solo games he enjoys for a while while I chat with my parents or a friend.
A day trip to Bern with my 3-year-old and friends: at the same time, each age has its magic and I got the opportunity to spend a day with my younger son and two of my best friends (one of whom was visiting with her whole family). We ended up going to an indoor playground that I hadn’t been to in years and it was so much fun to watch my son explore the whole area, get confident in going down the big slide and asking us to join him. I loved seeing him interact with our friend who is his godmother, witnessing the fun he has with another adult that is part of his life. It made me realise how important community is particularly in parenthood and how lucky I was to have these lovely people to share moments like this with, making parenting so much easier - even if distance does separate us and the moments we get to physically spend together are rare.
And then there’s the little every day joys: the cuddles, the moment they come running to me when I pick them from day care, watching them fall asleep next to me, spending some time outside with them and being able to follow their rhythm…
The challenges of motherhood are real and I have come to see how our societal beliefs don’t support us as parents - but for me, being their mother is also filled with a lot of fun and joy that I wouldn’t experience otherwise. When we are in the depths of exhaustion and overwhelm, it’s easy to forget it, so I loved this little moment to reflect and remember.