You may not know this, but as a reader of the New Orleans Moms Blog, you have been on a journey with me. For the past three years, just before my birthday, I have shared with you my personal struggle for baby #2. In the first year for my 30th birthday, I wrote about my miscarriage and the emotions that accompanied that. In the second year for my 31st birthday, I wrote about my infertility process, and that my husband and I were trying to determine the best plan for us. Now it is year three, and I am 32. This year, we are very blessed to have a family of four as our little one is now three months old. Our arms are full and our hearts are whole.
It is hard to put into words just how amazing, and how hard, the past three years have been.
There have been some very high highs and some very low lows. Over the past year, I have had some wonderful support. From my husband, to friends, to girls I hadn’t spoken to since high school who reached out to share their stories and offer hope and to the readers of this blog. It was wonderful to see this amazing spirit in people. It was great to see motherhood at its finest. Moms rallying around each other, offering stories, words of support and encouragement. It is powerful, and it is the way it should be.
Motherhood can bring women together in a bond that is rooted in strength and understanding. Three years ago when New Orleans Moms Blog was started, it was just a group of girls. But together we have seen each other through so many life changes and about a dozen babies. We come from different circumstances, different neighborhoods, different lifestyles and even different states. But our group remains an open dialogue, without judgment on how each of us parent and our personal life decisions. We respect that we are all different and are there to support and cheer for each other.
It takes a village to raise a child.
But it also takes a village to support mom. Moms rely on each other for advice, to learn from experiences and for an occasional reality check.
We all know that motherhood is a challenge. There are good days where we can conquer the world and there are bad days when we just can’t seem to get it together. As moms we all struggle with something. It could be something as big as getting pregnant, or something as small as getting the house cleaned for the week. There are highs and lows each and every day of being a mom. There is always a challenge that we are faced with.
Motherhood is uncharted territory for all of us.
Just because something works for one family does not mean it works for another. And that is the beauty of it. We are all doing what we believe is best to support and grow the little lives we are responsible for. We all have different stories of motherhood to tell. And, that is something that needs to be celebrated.
I was trying to decide what I would write this year’s post on. I didn’t want to write it on overcoming infertility because that didn’t feel right. So for this year’s entry in to this journal, I want to say thank you to my village. Thank you to friends and family for being a part of my daily support system. You keep me sane and moving forward. Thank you to the New Orleans Moms Blog team for being an infinite resource and amusement. And, thank you to our readers for going on this journey with me and your response.
