P!NK! She May Not Be Everyone’s Favorite, But I Have No Doubt She is an example of a true PoopieMommy! She is as REAL as it gets!!!!

Good afternoon, Poopies! Happy happy Friday to ya! What a week! Lots of changes always taking place around here…will definitely have to blog about it all next week. But today is all about YOU, not me! Part of why I really love Fridays is because I genuinely enjoy posting the MOMtras for you all. I hope you each take some ME time for yourselves that you so very much deserve and give the MOMtras real consideration.  Even if you have just a few minutes alone to think about them over the weekend, you will undoubtedly being doing yourself some good and your family as well. It’s not just the message I like to share in the MOMtra that is essential, it’s also the the stillness of being in a different head space…a calmer, more peaceful place in which to take a step back from the hustle and bustle of our daily lives and give yourself the gift of quiet. The words of the MOMtra are actually less important than the very act of observing the MOMtra moment. It is the essence of the act which will stay in your heart and soul. This process allows you to be more open to noticing and receiving the grace that is all around you and certainly helps you transmit the grace you absolutely hold inside yourself.

Inspiration is a curious, wonderous thing. You just never know where it’s going to come from. I’m finding more and more that it derives directly from my daughters, as it did with this week’s MOMtra. The other night I was lying in bed with them singing them to sleep. It’s a tradition around here to go through several tunes at bedtime. It always calms them down and I find that it actually calms me down too. Singing is similar to meditation in that it has a calming effect due to the fact that you are focusing on the sound of the words and melody coming from your voice. A & D have been asking me a lot about pregnancy lately and what it was like when I was pregnant with each of them. They have been asking me to sing some of the songs I sang to them when they were inside my belly. I often sing “Landslide” or “By Your Side” or “You Are My Sunshine” or “Nobody Does it Better.” And almost every night we sing “Stand By Me” as they hum the bass track beneath my words. But the other night A asked me to sing that song from the radio that we haven’t heard in awhile. “What song, honey?” I asked. “You know the Perfect song, mama. I love that one.” I had to think for a moment, and then I realized she wanted me to sing “Perfect” by P!NK. We hadn’t played it in the car in awhile and I was surprised she mentioned it. “Sure, ” I said, “I’ll sing that one. What made you think of that?” “Well we’re singing all our baby belly songs and I remember you told me that she sang that to her baby while it was in her belly too.”

Man, the memory on this kid. Like a year ago she asked me what that song was about and I told her P!NK wrote it for her baby when she was pregnant. I looked-up part of the article I read on it and this is what P!NK said about her song:

“I have a life inside of me, and I want her or him to know that I will accept him or her with open and loving and welcoming arms….And though I will prepare this little munchkin for a sometimes cruel world, I will also equip this kid to see all the beauty in it as well. There are good people in this world that are open-minded, and loving. There are those that accept us with all of our flaws. I do that with my fans/friends, and I will do that with my child, whoever they decide to be.”

What a gift to give your child, huh? First of all, the song is amazing and beautiful and its meaning expresses such an important facet of motherhood – ACCEPTANCE. I sang it for A and D as they lie snuggly in their beds and when I was finished, A asked me the following question: “Mommy, do you think we’re perfect?” Without hesitation, I said, unequivocally, “yes.” And that, Poopies, is the truth. Even with all their bickering, whining, tantrum and attitudes, these little people that me and PoopieDaddy made together are perfect to me. And they always will be…no matter what they do or say or who they become or the choices they make or the flaws they may have or the problems they may cause…they are ours and they are perfect. This isn’t in the delusional, my kid can do no wrong way that I mean this. It’s in the way that P!NK intends it to mean as well – just to instill a sense of acceptance from us toward them so they always feel self-acceptance in a world that may often try to make them feel bad about what makes them different and unique. This is an incredibly important message to get across to your children, even at this young age, and I could sense by A’s question about the song’s meaning that it already resonates with her. I’m grateful she asked me to sing it and I will definitely make it a part of our nightly repetoire.

And so, Poops, the chorus of “Perfect” will be today’s MOMtra. I know you all know the tune, and I highly encourage you to sing it aloud throughout your weekend. Let your kids hear you say the words. Tell them what it means. Explain how they are perfect to you too. And, equally as important, sing to  yourself as a reminder to accept who you are too. So often, even as adults and parents who should know better, we forget the unbelievable value of self-acceptance. Our kids need to see that we love ourselves, flaws and all. So sing away, my Poops, sing away:

“Pretty, pretty please

don’t you ever, ever feel

like your less than, less than perfect.

Pretty, pretty please

if you ever, ever feel

like you’re nothing

you are perfect to me.”

Sounds simple on the radio, but those are some very powerful, powerful lyrics indeed. I hope you will recall them throughout the next few days and feel good about yourselves and those beautiful little people you brought into this beautiful but often complicated world.  Thanks for all your continued support. ‘Ole Poops here couldn’t do it without you! Until Monday, my Poopies….

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