Mothering small children is a rollercoaster of every emotion you can possibly have. One minute you're in peaceful bliss feeding your newborn, and the next minute you look up to see that your toddler just colored a mural on the wall with permanent marker. Your bliss turns into rage then turns into sadness because you're just too tired to be mad. Then it repeats the next day.
One mom, Chaunie Brusie, knows the struggle and blessing of parenthood all too well. But now that she's out of the newborn and toddler stage, she's realizing a few things that are helping and have already helped a lot of young moms out there who feel like their lives are completely upside down.
"No longer a mother of babies"
Brusie recently wrote a heartfelt Facebook post about the transition from mothering small children to watching them grow up. While that's a whole other emotional rollercoaster of its own, Brusie focuses on making it through the tough times, and making sure moms realize they're doing an awesome job.
"I am no longer the mother of babies," she writes. "I don't spend my days rushing to fit things in between the next feed, sprinting between kids with exploding diapers, running around in circles feeling like my life is solely spent on averting disaster after disaster, cleaning small bums, and gritting my teeth through another senseless round of crying."
There's light at the end of the tunnel
Sound familiar? When you're in the thick of parenting young kids, it seems like an endless cycle of chaos. But Brusie is here to tell you that you'll make it through.
She talks about how hard it was feeling like she never did enough. She never felt like she cooked enough healthy meals, didn't feel like she worked hard enough to get her pre-baby body back and didn't think she did enough fun things with her kids. She was constantly tearing herself down.
But she continues, "Looking back now, I kind of want to cry. There is so much hardship in that stage of life of littles that you honestly just can't see until you're past it."
Reminiscing on her covered-in-spit-up days, she's amazed she even made it through. She describes those days as "intense, overwhelming and exhausting."
But she has one message for moms who are going through similar situations, and it just might be everything you needed to hear today.
You're doing incredible things
She writes, "Please believe me when I say you are doing incredible things. It's not just you, it really is that hard. And none of us give ourselves enough credit."
"Wherever you are, mama, know that those of us on the other side see you and we're cheering for you. Someday, you too, will recognize just how incredible you are."
You're doing more than you know
This is such a beautiful reminder for every mom who thinks they're not doing enough or thinks they're not a good parent. Brusie closes her post by saying, "Chances are if you feel like you aren't doing enough, [you're] already doing more than you know."
Moms, give yourselves more credit. You're raising tiny humans who will change the world someday, and that's an incredible thing to think about. So hold your head high, and remember that you've got this.