Embrace Your Strengths as a Mum
This post may contain affiliate links. Disclosure here.
Embracing your strengths as a mum? What does that even mean?
So, you know that quiet, niggling feeling that you should be doing more? More crafting, more baking, more nature walks, more messy play. All while keeping the house clean, your patience intact, and the children well-fed on (mostly) home cooked food. Whatever stresses you out on that particular “To Do List” of motherhood & identity, well, your strengths will be the opposite.
I’ll give you an example. I used to imagine I’d be the mum who joyfully crafted with her toddlers. I mean, I’ve got three degrees in the History of Art. The kind who didn’t flinch at glitter explosions or gluey fingers. Who framed their pasta art and loved every second, imaging I was raising modern day Tiepolos or Michelangelos.
But the truth is… I don’t enjoy it. Not really.
I spent years trying to be that mother, convinced that a “good” mum must say “yes!” to all the paint, puzzles, and sticky glue. I thought if I just tried harder, I’d eventually become the sort of woman who liked it.
Quelle Shock: I didn’t. Instead, I was stressed, snappy, and rather controlling. The children weren’t having fun, and nor was I.
You Don’t Have to Love It All
Here’s the thing: you don’t have to be good at everything. You don’t have to love every part of motherhood. None of us do.
For example, I really don’t like puzzles or card games. Board games? My mind starts to melt when someone tries to explain the rules. So I’ll sit with the littlest ones for a bit if the game’s REALLY SIMPLE, but older children know they’re on their own. And that’s okay.
Where we do thrive as a family is outside on walks, reading stories together, and – as they’ve grown – crafts like knitting or sewing. When we embrace our strengths as mums, when we lean into what we genuinely enjoy, we all come away lighter. The time is richer.
The Pressure to Perform
It’s easy to feel like you should be ticking all the boxes. Social media doesn’t help. One scroll and you’ll see families baking sourdough, growing sunflowers, building cardboard castles, and hosting beautifully styled birthday parties… with everyone in matching outfits, no less. Mum as well.
But here’s a quiet truth; those moments are real, yes, but they’re not the whole picture. No one is brilliant at it all and definitely not all the time. Not even the glossy mums on Instagram.
Make Peace with What You Love
There’s something beautifully powerful and uplifting about accepting what you’re naturally drawn to. For me, it was realising that crafting with very young children just wasn’t for me. The chaos made me anxious. The sticky cleanup, for seemingly very little time of actual crafting, felt overwhelming.
So we compromise. Twice a year, around Easter and just before Christmas, we have big, glorious, messy craft sessions. I brace myself. I lay out newspaper. I breathe deeply, knowing this is something that the children really enjoy.
And even then, I find small ways to make it gentler for me too. A few years ago, I discovered Pysanky wraps (those delicate Eastern European egg decorations). We can enjoy glitter, paint and some easy yet lovely-looking decorations. Everyone is happy and there’s usually cake involved as well. Hopefully not covered in glitter by the end of the session…
Honour Your Season
Your strengths and energy levels might shift with each season. When your children are very small, you might find joy in singing silly songs or reading board books together or letting them unleash the innards of the Tupperware cupboard. As they grow, maybe it’s long walks, baking together, or late-night chats that light you up.
It doesn’t have to be everything, all at once. It really can’t be.
A Quiet Invitation
So let this be your gentle permission slip: do what suits you and your children. Embrace your strengths as a mum. Let go of the rest. Remember: comparison is the thief of joy. When mum is happy and at peace, then everything in the home and family flows from that.
Better a joyful half-hour reading aloud snuggled under a blanket than an hour of forced crafting that ends in tears (yours, mostly). The goal isn’t performance. It’s connection. Love. Presence.
You are already doing more than enough.
Wishing you small joys and deep breaths, wherever you are today.
And if this spoke to you, why not share it with a friend who needs to hear the same?
Pin it for later, or send it to a mum in the thick of it. We’re all in this together.
Generated with Pin Generator
