My Favorite 4-Letter Word

I won’t make you scroll like some Buzzfeed ClickBait. My favorite 4-letter word is “same.” 

Sure, it’s a simple word. But this word has the power to make you feel less alone by connecting you to others.

Since becoming a mom, so much was NEW and seemingly impossible to navigate. 

Mom-life has been romanticized since the ’50s with pictures of women in their Sunday best with freshly baked homemade bread coming out of the oven to now watching influencers stretch their sourdough in their Lululemon gear. It seems like everyone ELSE is doing it all seamlessly: they’ve got well dressed, well behaved kids, a full face of makeup and a sparkling clean house…but how?

The thing I’ve come to realize is they aren’t actually doing it all. Moms aren’t doing it all now and they weren’t doing it then, either.

This is a picture of me buried in my pile of laundry. You’d think it was for a family of 10 but nope — just four of us. I struggle to fold it right after it’s done and once it’s folded, I often don’t put it all away the same day.

My windows have handprints. I feel like I’m always picking up toys. There are usually dishes in my sink. I have stretch marks. I am tired and overwhelmed. I cry. I make mistakes. I don’t have it all figured out.

Can I get a “same”?

• If you don’t cook three healthy, well balanced meals every day of the week — same!
• If your super cool mom van is an absolute disaster with goldfish crumbs sprinkled around like it was a decorative choice — same!
• If you rely on dry shampoo and caffeine more than you’d like to admit — same!
• If sometimes you lose your crap and don’t always parent as gently as you want to — same!

Sometimes the most comforting word is just this: same, friend, same. 

Be real with your people. Share your struggles with a simple “same.” Moms need to know they are AMAZING whether they are keeping up with the influencers or not. Keeping kids alive and happy every day is a feat in and of itself.

I definitely don’t have it all together all the time. Nobody does. So share your “sames” and know you’re not the only one.