Every Mom Needs a Cheerleader (And We Can All Be One)
I haven’t figured out much in my short 5 and a half years of parenting, but I have figured out one thing: every mom needs a cheerleader. Not cheerleaders in the traditional sense – no one’s following us around with pompoms or doing back handsprings when we convince our kids to try Brussels sprouts. I’m talking about the people in our everyday lives who help us navigate the world of parenting. Every mom needs at least one cheerleader in her life, and remembering why we need them can help us be there for another mom in our lives during all her best parenting days, worst ones, and everything in between.
Every mom needs a cheerleader who:
- Hypes her up: this person makes you believe you can do anything. Make a seven-layer birthday cake from scratch? She’s the one at the party saying, “OMG have you seen the cake. It’s incredible!” Hand sew a new Easter dress for your children? She’s the one commenting on your pictures, “That outfit is amazing! Where can I find one for all of my children, myself, and my extended family?” This cheerleader never lets you feel like a failure and always talks you up bigger than you’d ever do for yourself.
- Cheers her on: this person will listen to your plans / goals / dreams and say, “Go head, girl!” and makes all your ideas seem like the best ideas ever. She helps you take chances and realize what you’re really capable of, never lets you feel alone in your adventures, sees when you’re running out of steam and starts running alongside you screaming, “You’re a rock star. You got this!” every step of the way.
- Celebrates her victories: this is the person who hangs behind the scenes and makes sure that everything you do that deserves being celebrated actually gets celebrated. I think this is the cheerleader moms need the most. I love celebrating my friends and the amazing things they do, but I’m not quick to celebrate myself. This is the person who knows you’ll never brag on yourself, so she instead does it for you. Every. Single. Time. you deserve it.
- Supports her on the hard days: this is the person who sits and listens. She isn’t quick to give advice unless you ask for it. She’s the one who brings you the extra-large cup of coffee you didn’t know you needed, helps you fold clothes while you’re crying into hooded towels about how impossible it is to do everything, and takes your kids for a snoball just so you can have a moment to regroup from a challenging parenting day (the days that make us wonder if we’re screwing up our kids or if we’re making terrible decisions or whether we’re really cut out for all of this). This cheerleader is the one quietly lets you cry and then gently reminds you that you’re doing a great job (See the “Baby Race” episode of Bluey).
- Makes being a mom seem so much more possible on the hardest days: these are the people who don’t even realize they’re your cheerleader. They are the ones who bring you along on their ride and always seem to see the best things about you as a mom. They compliment you on the way you handle it all and always share some admirable trait they see in you but do this in a way that makes you believe what they are saying. They make you seem like the world’s best mom on a day when you really need to feel that way. These are the people you never feel like you deserve but are always so thankful to have in your life at just the exact moment you need them.
I know that every memorable moment of parenting I’ve had is directly tied to someone in my life whom I would classify as my cheerleader. Realizing this has allowed me to step back and take advantage of opportunities to be another mom’s cheerleader, one who hypes, cheers, celebrates, supports, and makes being a mom all the more possible on those really rough days. You don’t have to be a parent to be a cheerleader for mom. You just simply need to be her hype-squad, her cheer section, her victory parade planner, her listening ear, and her biggest fan. Because it’s the mom cheerleaders who make us better moms.
