It felt like only yesterday when we were celebrating my daughter’s last birthday. However, since the summer, my daughter has been telling me non-stop what she wants for her birthday. Just thinking about it now has brought a smile on my face. Being a mother is not the easiest job on earth. It has definitely been an emotional rollercoaster for me, I can tell you. I always associate my daughter’s birthday as a celebration of how long I have been a mother too. Why shouldn’t it be though? Why should my daughter get all the pampering?
Being a mother is not easy I tell you
This year has been an especially hard one for us. My daughter was having recurring tonsilitis that never seemed to resolve completely before it flares up again. In fact, after writing this post, we’re off to see a paediatrician to see if it is worth taking the darn thing out.
I used to work in a hospital when I’m not blogging and podcasting and had to stop work because of this. No employer would ever understand why you have to constantly take time off work several times a month for a few days at a time.
In the UK, a lot of large organisations have a sickness policy where you can only take so much time off sick before you are being referred to Occupational Health and HR.
If you were ever in doubt, being a mother is NOT an easy job I assure. When my daughter’s tonsilitis was flaring up, it was affecting her sleep. Instead of sleeping myself, I would stay up until the early hours of the morning to check up on her. If her snoring was really loud because she was lying down in a way that covered her throat, I had to turn her to her side. I’m not complaining though, it’s my job as a parent and I’m full of gratitude that I am able to fulfil my duties to my child.
So this year, after everything being a mother has thrown at me, I feel like I have to celebrate this milestone in grand style. That in spite of everything life has thrown at us, we’ve (almost) made it to 4 years. My prayer is for us both to each reach 100 years in good health and in wealth, happiness, love and joy and to be surrounded by people who love us unconditionally.
I say wealth, not because I aspire to have as much money as Alakija or Oprah but because money is essential to look after a child. Kids are like human black holes that suck out all your resources.
So how should I celebrate 4 years of being a mother this year?
Option 1
I didn’t originally plan on doing anything this year for myself. I planned on taking some cupcakes to my daughter’s nursery, so she can get a birthday song from her friends, then have her host a tea party with her cousins and a neighbour at our home. I thought about having a face painter come over to ours to entertain them, but at £50 per hour, that’s not going to happen.
Option 2
Instead of or in addition to having a tea party at home, I was considering taking my daughter to see a play in a theatre. Some parents in our local mummy group on Facebook had mentioned that they took their daughters to see Disney on Ice. So I was thinking I could explore what would suit my daughter. She loves going to the cinema, so a theatre might be a new and enjoyable experience for her.
Then I thought, wait a minute, what about me? A few weeks ago, I had a little moan about no one ever giving me gifts since I had my daughter.
Option 3
Then, I got a big smile on my face when I got an email offering me a gift voucher to buy something from Simply Beach. It was so exciting, finally, someone remembers me. Simply Beach has a lot of luxury women’s swimwear that I feel totally pampered already just from looking at the pictures. I especially love that their swimwear range also caters to bigger cups and they have quite a lot to choose from. Normally I would go to Marks and Spencers as they were one of a handful of UK brands that catered to bigger cups. So it was nice to discover this new brand.
Whilst on their website, I noticed that they also did Kaftans and really pretty ones at that too. Their MELISSA ODABASH TRIXIE SEQUIN KAFTAN looks really pretty so I’ve been wondering if I should treat myself to it? What do you think?
Option 4
In addition to Option 3, I was also thinking if I should splash out a little bit and go on holiday to Malta, (budget permitting). It’s warmer there in winter than in the UK. So hopefully we would be able to catch some sun and I’d have a nice opportunity to try out my new Kaftan (if and when I get it).
The perfect holiday for me is one where there are onsite childcare and kids’ classes that last for at least 2 hours at a time. That would give me ample time to myself to catch up on sleep, use the in-house jacuzzi and have a full body massage.
Option 4 sounds like I should wake up from a delusional dream though 🙁
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So there you have it, the options I am considering to celebrate 4 years of being a mother. What do you think? Please leave a comment below. If you have any other suggestions, I would love to hear it.
