We all start our “careers” in motherhood one way or another. Some prepare, plan, read lots of books and think they are going to have it all mapped out and controlled. Ha, you kids kill me.  Others fall into it accidently because they are stupid or irresponsible, like me. 

The point is, regardless of how you came to be a mom; your life has changed-FO’EVA.  Not in the flowery way; I’m referring to the fact that now you have someone else’s needs that come before your own.  Your ship has changed course and you are no longer captain but rather some deck-hand down below hustling around like a sucka.

I saw this picture recently of my family (circa 2008) and was taken aback at how “momsie” I looked.  Let me define what I mean by “momsie”.  To me, momsie means a tired face, hair that is slightly off, out of date/ill-fitting clothing, beige teeth, terrible posture and perhaps a few extra pounds than necessary.  To be described as momsie means you aren’t bringing the heat.  You’ve lost something.  

As I mentioned above, I had not planned to start my mothering career when I did, I was caught a bit off-guard. Is this an excuse to look bad, maybe?  I think if you look at motherhood the same way you would look at any other career, you can see similar patterns emerge.  You start out a bit scared, intimidated and in need of guidance and more experience to feel self-assured in your decisions.  As time passes, you realize things are not that heavy-duty and you can handle it.  After a few years in the same industry and you have moved up the ranks and feel better about things and are much more efficient (think second child).

So back to this picture.  I didn’t quite have my mom-legs yet; as far as my “career,” I was finding where I fit in and how to make it happen.  I was deep in momsie-land and close to my max-out; the point where my wardrobe consisted solely of yoga pants, I had a bad short haircut and bought a van. 

When I see this picture it makes me laugh at how caught up you can get and forget how good it feels to look good and take care of yourself.  I am happy to say that seven years in I think I have this thing under control and have some of my swagger back. At least my hair isn’t feathered anymore and I finally got a bleaching kit.