Pregnant WomanThis Sunday is Mother’s Day. So no surprises here, we are celebrating mothers, grandmas, aunties and sisters. Everyone and anyone is is a mother. This day means more than the presents, the flowers, the candles and the cards. There is so much wrapped up in the journey and role of motherhood.

I wanted to share this beautiful video and article from mother.ly that I found which celebrates the first few months of motherhood – having a newborn and all of the chaos and wonder surrounding that time.

Give yourself a moment to put your feet up and watch the short video and remind yourself how your ‘doing nothing’ was actually ‘doing everything’. We are mothers. Our nothing truly is a whole lot of everything. Whether you are 40 years from the precious moments of holding your newborn for the first time or, if you’re only weeks into your motherhood journey may you be captivated by the emotion of this stunning video.

Being a mother is something that never ends, nor can the emotional attachment to motherhood change. Whether your babies are 18 months or 18 years’ or 48 years old, they are still yours. They will always be yours. When they learn to walk you will remember the first time they reached out to you and saw you or the first time you felt them kick within. When they learn to read you will have experience happiness but also a pang of fear as it is another step towards independence. When they first cross the threshold of the kindy classroom, you will feel the ache of being left behind, and when they learn to drive cars, you will remember the first time you buckled them into their capsule/car seat in the hospital carpark. So many things you will remember and some you will have shared with those around you but there are some things that will be tucked away in the memory bank that only you can access. Those initial moments, the magic or the tired hours, the waking in the middle of the night and the dirty piles of laundry that were once your playground. Those memories will be yours forever.

As the video so elegantly puts it,

“There is no greater task than the ‘nothing’ you did yesterday, the ‘nothing’ you are doing today and the “nothing” you will do tomorrow. Caring for a baby is all about the immediate experience, yet the first two years are all about investment. It’s give, give, give and give some more.”

The exhaustion, lack of sleep, worry that your house is not clean, tears of frustration when you cannot get done what you wanted – none of that can compare to perhaps being the first to see your baby’s milestones. Laughing, giggling, smiling, rolling over – your job is so precious. To teach another human being about the world to allow them to engage with the world around them for the first time. That is the essence of being a mother. “And when the hard part fades, you’ll realise “nothing” was actually everything.”

I also want to mention that as you’re reading this, I know that Mother’s Day can be hard for people. Some of you have probably lost your mothers or perhaps you aren’t close to them geographically so this weekend although enjoyable as you are celebrated there will be moments that take your breath away either as you remember your mother or as you hear her voice on the phone. To that, I say breathe, sweet one. Breathe through the moments that hurt and that cause you sadness in your heart. Smile at the memory of her, light a candle, play her favourite song or cook something that reminds you of her but most of all be grateful because as you feel this ache or twinge of sadness, it’s most likely because you were deeply loved by her. Breathe it all in.

For the new mothers; the hard parts will fade and what you will be left with is intense love that you didn’t know you could feel. For the mothers who are further down the track, keep loving, keep being that soft place to land and always remind them that they matter and they make a difference in this world.

For every mother may we remain in awe of one another and the children we are all raising. May we cheer each other on because motherhood is a beautiful experience.

Much love,

Susanna Bateman #littlemiraclescommunity