Monday

Sometimes I Just Want to Quit

I like to blog about good things.


I like to encourage, challenge and remind other Moms they aren't alone.

I like to remind myself.

I try not to rant and carry on about the things I feel negative about.

I don't intend to start now.

But I do want you to know that sometimes, I just want to quit.

I hate even typing those words because I'm not a quitter.

I don't intend to start now.

But sometimes, the want is there.

Like the other day when I told y'all how we were teaching our kids to be thankful. And then a spirit of unthankfulness and complain-with-every-breath swept through our house.  It lurks its ugly head more than I care to admit.

Or when I shared my Advent calendar ideas, I didn't expect my kids to whine when not all the the activities were fun and all about them! (see what I mean?).

I wanted to beat them.

I don't intend to start now.

My life is messy. It's not the clean, crisp (edited) life you always see. I yell (!) sometimes. I cry and whine and dream of a full time Nanny. At times I feel guilty and sad and completely unequipped.

And even though it may sound pathetic, sometimes I want to be what I blog. I set the bar high, occasionally I scale it, but usually I end up missing it entirely.

Being a Mom is hard.

I don't intend to stop now.

75 comments:

Unknown said...

Hang in there. Easy to say, yeah, but I am an old granny, pushing 70and I know. It will get harder sometimes (little kids, little problems, big kids, big problems)and will be quite rewarding sometimes. I have typed and erased and typed and erased, but really just want to say Hang in there. God bless. Keep on keeping on. Don't quit. Hang tough.

Takin' time to smell the flowers! said...

I want to thank you yet again for being honest. Your honesty is my reality also...I metioned before that we are doing the advent calendar too and I even took some of your wonderful ideas, well let's just say that my kids have done the very same thing as yours apparently. It makes me feel like a failure. To top it all off, we watched home movies yesterday...you know the one's where the kids are innocent, sweet, non-talking back babies and toddlers. SAD! Being a Mom is hard, I don't intend to stop now either! God Bless, friend:)

Lori said...

We can all relate! And just know that you inspire and encourage all of your readers daily. We know you're not perfect - who is? - and it's good to set the bar high. We've got to strive to be better or we'll all just wallow in the muck. Have a great week!

Anonymous said...

Bless your heart! The last two days around here have been just great - absolutely amazing.

You wouldn't belive me if I told you.

(Please read the above passages with so much sarcasm it makes your teeth hurt. You'll get how I feel then . . . . )

j said...

Sometimes it helps folks like me to know that there are others feeling the same way I do at times. I don't guess it can be easy all of the time.

Precision Quality Laser said...

We all want to be the crisp and edited mother....alas, we are but sloppy rough drafts, which constantly need correcting.

There are the days I get weary of trying to attain even a level of normalcy in motherhood.

And then there are the days that soar above the ugly days. Days in which you glimpse a tiny bit of God's love wrapped up in a childish hug that comes with an unsolicited "I love you mom."

Thanks for keeping it real :)

Anonymous said...

I can relate in so many ways. I want to be so much more than I am at the moment. But I just can't stop trying....trying to be the best mom I can be. And, no, I'm not a quitter either. So, when the days get the best of me and that's all I really want to do, I just remind myself of that as well.

Christy said...

I could have written this entry time and time again. I feel so much is just falling down around me right now, and pretty much wrote that last night on my own blog.

Praying for you.

Nancy M. said...

I think we all feel that way sometimes. It gets better eventually. My son thinks everything has to be fun too.

HoodMama said...

Oh, you so spoke to my heart this morning! Thanks for your honesty! It's why I love your blog.

me said...

oh boy.

i'm very thankful for you honesty...because we all need to get a grip...being a mom is hard work. and we all set the bar way too high most of the time...setting unrealistic expectations for ourselves and the people around us. here's the bottom line...it is what it is.

this too, shall pass. swing through the drive-thru and pick yourself up some sweet tea...you deserve it. have a good day.

thank you.

kate

Lori said...

THIS is why I read your blog faithfully. Hang in there!

Unknown said...

Thanks for keeping it real :)

a Tonggu Momma said...

I just assume that - behind the scenes - everyone is nearly as pathetic as me. If I didn't make that assumption, I don't think I'd crawl out of bed.

Dawn @ simply transparent said...

Whew..your human..we can be friends now ;D

Who doesn't go through this all?!

And of course everytime...everytime I share how God is a blessing in our family, you can be sure...very sure a trail/test will follow.

Thanks for not quitting, now.

Lynn said...

I love this post. Thanks for sharing your heart....and attitudes that we ALL share at times. You are an amazing mom with wonderful ideas...even if they aren't always appreciated.

TidyMom said...

Thanks for being so brave and making such an honest post.

Sometimes in blogland it's easy to start thinking everyone else has this "simple perfect easy beautiful life" -thanks for keeping it real, we've ALL been there - {{HUGS}} to you- You're an AWESOME mom!!

~Tidymom

Erica said...

Honey, I know you know we all have those days...but thanks for showing us that you're not perfect and we don't have to feel like poo under your shoe! God was smart (and a little wily) when He created kids. They start out as these cute little innocent cherubic babies so that we fall in love with them unconditionally, and then as they grow up we get to see what they're REALLY like... and we love them all the same. :)

Anonymous said...

Thank you for being Human! and for the courage to admit it in public. Thank you for the good things, the challenges, the encouragement, the rants as well as the realism you present!

everyday mom of one said...

You are not the only one believe me, I had a really rough day on Thursday and called my MIL in tears after I had already growled at the dog and Jack and burst into tears, and had Jack crying.

Being a SAHM is a tough thankless job at times, don't feel bad at all for having rough days.

Dawn said...

It's a hard job... good thing we didn't know HOW hard before we actually brought our precious bundles home for the first time, right? Just know that ALL moms have these days (sometimes weeks and months) despite how "pretty" their blog may appear.

Your honesty is refreshing!!!

Be blessed, Kristin!

Especially Heather said...

This is exactly the kind of post that I love to read..

You are real. You are human.

And you know it.

Just continue to "Keep it real"!

-H

Cheryl said...

I can totally relate. Lately, I just want to go...anywhere, but somewhere where I'm alone. But, nope, not gonna do it. Not going to let myself get down. I know we all go through stuff, but we all do have much to be thankful for. {{hugs}}

Connie said...

Being a Mom is really hard work and it isn't sunshine and lolly pops everyday. I sometimes wish that bloggers that Mom were more real about their lives.

Thanks for sharing this.

Poof said...

It is so difficult and so worth it! Keep it up. The cliche is true - it goes by so fast.

& just to lift your spirits: when I first read this, I thought it said "Sometimes I just want to quilt."

Amy @ Living Locurto said...

I about spit out my coffee laughing when I read the line "I wanted to beat them." Are you reading my mind?? ha!

We had to get a babysitter yesterday just to have some peace to watch the Cowboy game. Best 2.5 hours I've had in a long time!! Gotta luv them, but man, they can drive you a little nutty. I can't wait until they have their own kids and I can just sit back and chuckle. Is that wrong?? ha!

Stacey said...

First let me give you a ((HUG))!
One of the reasons I LOVE coming to your blog everyday is because of how real you are. None of us are perfect and it is so nice to know there are people out there in the world that we can relate to. There are fake people in our real lives or even in the blog world that makes us think they have everything so perfect.

Thank YOU for keeping it REAL and being some one so many of us can count on and relate to.

You are a true gem!!!

A Christian Mom said...

Occassionaly, it's good to hear you aren't perfect! ;) We ALL have those days & if anyone says they don't, then frankly, they are lying!

I hope you have a great week!!

Jeni said...

Being a Mom IS hard!! The benefits are great, but the hours! The disobedience! The whining! The wiping!

I don't think I've had an easy day yet, except when Hubs & I escaped for the weekend & left the Girlie with her grandparents.

It's good to hear that other Moms also struggle on a daily basis. Hang in there!

Jennifer @ JenniferDukesLee.com said...

You go girl! Thanks for your vulnerability. Gives others permissions to keep it real too, ya know?

Shauna said...

I feel your pain dear! Being a mom is hard - but oh, are we the prized possession of Christ!

Our life is a bowl of Barry's said...

Good to hear you're normal like the rest of us! It's hard to be positive all the time. i think I managed to be that way for the first 2 years of my first twin boys' lives (our count stands at 5 now..tells you how long the positive gene has been missing!)Hang in there-today your kids might do something that makes you wonder why you even had to put up this post!!!

Anonymous said...

We KNOW. You are not alone.

I often feel like a FRAUD. Like if my readers followed me around all day they might say something like "Wow on your blog you seem like such a GOOD MOM'. It is a hard line to follow...to be AUTHENTIC on the blog and also to show the positives so that readers are left entertained and uplifted. It is hard.

But I hear ya sistah. I know.

Kelly said...

Great Post!
This comes at just the right time during the holiday rush. We are all running around trying to be a good neighbor, coworker, wife, mommy, daughter, sister, ahhhhhhhhh
it gets to be too much. Can't quit now.

Stephanie Wetzel said...

Wow. I just posted about the same thing last week.

I suspect this time of year just makes it worse. If we already set the bar high most of the time, we take it to new heights when Thanksgiving and Christmas come around.

How come MY kids never look like those Victorian Christmas cards? Instead they're fighting over who gets to open the advent calendar or how high to hang the ornaments on the tree or whether Santa will actually bring my 6yo her wish of that incredibly overpriced and lame Fur Real Pony. (He won't.)

It's a minefield, I tell ya. Glad to know someone else is walking it. :)

Liza on Maui said...

Hey...don't quit on us! Quitting not allowed!

Read this post this morning and put a smile on my face - read it and be encouraged:

http://lotsofscotts.blogspot.com/2008/12/change-in-perspective.html

We LOVE your blog - We KNOW you are not perfect - We LOVE you much - even though we've never met - STAY - don't quit!

Aloha :),
Liza

Anonymous said...

Isn't funny what a chord a post like this strikes among moms?
I love to blog in my "gone awry" category for more than one reason:

*Everyone understands.

*It encourages others to know that we blogging moms-of-many don't have perfect lives as pure and flawless examples of patience, grace, kindness and cleanliness.

*The blogging itself helps us to see the humor and humanity in our own failures. Knowing that there's a laugh at the end of the tunnel makes the trip through the dark and gloomy tunnel far more bearable. I love to laugh at myself, and I love when others can laugh with me.

Carry on, sister. Blog on!

Liza on Maui said...

I left a comment earlier and not sure if it went through or if I accidentally erased it. Here's a link I placed in there:

http://lotsofscotts.blogspot.com/2008/12/change-in-perspective.html

aggiemomof2 said...

I feel your pain girl. Last weeks Advent activities with our kids were almost flawless and this week the entire thing was miserable! My husband actually had to stop in the middle and say, "They really do love you." I was about to lose it. I've been sick. The house is a mess. Nothing is ready for Christmas. I want to teach my children all about Christ's love and that is the last thing I feel like showing these days. But you are right. We can't quit. We are in this for the long haul and one day I WILL hear, "Well Done!" And thanks for an amazing and truthful blog. I've been lurking for awhile now--I've really been enjoying your family!

Anonymous said...

It's hard to imagine sometimes that the people (bloggers) we are reading everyday are just like we are.

We all get mad, we all have children that either misbehave, or whine, or have tantrums, or do something completely out of line. Or all of the above.

Sometimes we forget that. Yesterday, I went on a rant because my husband didn't help me get my son ready for mass. I had 20 minutes left, to eat, get that boy ready, and go. Nevermind that he was caring for the other three kids...he should have been helping me too, right?! Poor guy. I went on and on about how there are no clean clothes in the house because no one helps me with anything around here (meanwhile husband is standing there emptying and refilling the dishwasher). I actually thought to myself that "if only people knew the *real* me, they'd think I was awful." The winds of complaint sweep through my house too.

Hang in there!

Heather of the EO said...

Sometimes these things need to be said. It reminds other people that they aren't alone when they have a hard time. It's possible to paint an unreal picture with blogging, yes. So an occasional "I want to quit" is respected. Because it's true, being a mom is really hard.
I'm so glad that God pulls us out of the funk somehow and renews our energy. Otherwise I'd have a bad attitude every moment.

Tressa & Mark said...

Keep it real, sister. How else will the rest of us know when to reach out let you know you are being prayed for and lifted up.

Chicky said...

We've all been there, and it just brings us all together as a community to know that everyone's life is a bit messy sometimes...thanks for your candor.

Natalie said...

we are all in this together!!!

i just yelled at my kids for not sharing the little people baby Jesus!?!?!?

Tales From the Eurovan said...

The reality of life bites at times, ALL of us included. We ride the waves and some times we fall off and sometimes we stand. Stick with it, you are a great mom and you are doing a great job of mothering your kids, even if they don't realize or will appreciate it for another 20 years!
Take care
Julie

Mrs.Naz@BecomingMe said...

Thanks for keeping it real. Like Natalie wrote--"we're all in this together." And honestly---it's the raw blogs that I find most attractive. That's why I first started coming here...because you were "That" family. :-)

I am sorry though that you are going through a rough patch and encouraged that you're not giving up. You're such a blessing to us all.

Carolina Mama said...

28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.

29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;

31 but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
Isaiah 40:28-41

Blessings Kristen!

Photography said...

I am right there with you, I so feel you right now.

edie said...

Oh amen and amen. I wish I were the edited version of my blog too. Your honesty is so refreshing. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

I think it's good to set the bar high...but it does often cause undeserved disappointments.

It's such an interesting dynamic thing to have the BEST job on the planet but also have the HARDEST job. And then we feel guilty. We want to be salt and light all day everyday and it's just not possible.

All I know of you is this blog....the edited version as you say. But I think you balance it all very well. You are real AND you do really good things.

I think we all want to quit and run away sometimes. But then we realize how blessed we are even knee deep in laundry and screaming children :)

It's a beautiful life....thank you for sharing yours with us.

Living the Good Life said...

Hi, I found your blog a few weeks go and have enjoyed reading it immensely!!!! This post is what I have been feeling lately and would not allow myself to put into words. Thanks for sharing how you feel and letting me know that I am not alone! Most people where I live see my life as semi-perfect(where they get that I DO NOT KNOW) and I get the supermom comment often, but if they could really see me sometimes! Yikes, they would wonder what in the world has happened to her!!!!!! Thanks again for sharing!
Kayla Brazzel

Anonymous said...

I'm right there with you. It's so refreshing to hear your honesty, though. It took courage to write that and makes me want to keep pressing on too. Don't quit now. :)

Anonymous said...

I'm right there with you. It's so refreshing to hear your honesty, though. It took courage to write that and makes me want to keep pressing on too. Don't quit now. :)

Anonymous said...

I'm right there with you. It's so refreshing to hear your honesty, though. It took courage to write that and makes me want to keep pressing on too. Don't quit now. :)

Mom to 5...Daughter of the King said...

Wow! I could have written that!!

Anonymous said...

I get where you're coming from - this is exactly how I felt all weekend! Especially since the complaining-fighting wind blew threw our house full force, too!

Anonymous said...

These are totally normal feelings. A few days ago I had a particularly bad afternoon with my kids. There was yelling and crying and mean words. It made me think how life would be so much easier if I had never had kids.

But snap the hell out of it!! Your kids will be the ones taking care of you when you are old. :-)

Anonymous said...

Go back and read your post up today about your son and the pine needles. God is working in your family. He is faithful. Keep on, pressing on!

But thanks for sharing that it isn't always perfect. Makes me feel lots better!

I thank God for grace.

Rachel@just another day in paradise said...

I think there are alot of those feelings going around right now. . .don't know if it's the time of year or what, but everyone is fighting some tough feelings of ineptitude. . .Keep it up! Know that we're all there with you (well, not really, because that would make us stalkers, and stalkers we are not.).

Tanya said...

"Coincidence is when God chooses to remain anonymous."

It's a funny "coincidence" that you posted this today. I posted today about why I love your site: your authenticity. In fact, I gave you an award today for posts just like this one -- the posts that make me feel okay with not being perfect, the posts that remind me how God loves us enough to make up for all our weary shortcomings. Here's a link.
I don't know that I could ever encourage you (or anyone else!) as much as you've encouraged me, but I know God can make up the difference. Tomorrow's a new day. :)

Anonymous said...

Amen! Sister!

Anonymous said...

It is encouraging to hear from those that come before us. My kids are just preschool age but I already see the writing on the wall. Thanks for sharing.

Threeundertwo said...

You are my hero, really.

Jamie said...

Oh...I can so relate! Being a mom is hard! Thanks for keeping it real, friend.

Alexia said...

Well, at least we know your human like the rest of us :)

Unknown said...

Wow. I haven't been here in a while and you sure have grown! I love the new blog look and the craft ideas.

And honey, we all want to be perfect, but if you read my latest blog entry (yesterdays) you will see that we all have our demons.

Lisa @ The Plain-Spoken Pen said...

Oh, I am right there with you. There are days I feel like, hey, I'm 40, I should have it more together than this, and some days I do just want to lay down and not get back up for a while. You're not alone (and guess what? Sometimes I yell, too - I think all moms do at some point :) ).

Colleen - Mommy Always Wins said...

I ♥ this.

I'm right there with ya!

Stefani said...

Thanks for keeping it real! I love your blog because I can totally relate. I had one of "those" days last week. I actually (jokingly)sent my hubs an email letter of resignation. Fortunately for all of us, he refused to accept it. :)

My motto is: This too shall pass. It helps me to keep on keeping on. Hang in there girl!

Anonymous said...

It makes me feel so much better to know you are NORMAL.

Happy Mommy said...

Girl I hear every word you have written! Lately I haven't blogged much and to be honest it's because I don't have anything nice to say so I haven't said anything at all.... I yell sometimes too! I have kids who are really unthankful sometimes too! I hear you I really do!

Melody said...

Oh, I so agree with you. Being a mom is hard but I wouldn't trade it for anything because sometimes they are just sooo cute and make it all worthwhile. :)

Jennifer said...

Thank you so much for posting this! I read all of these wonderful blogs and then think... "OMG! My life is a mess. I yelled that time and I didn't do this other thing correctly." I am glad to know that things are not always as perfect as they seem.

Unknown said...

I meant to comment before today - but just wanted you to know that you are not alone!!

And we do not think you are perfect - that's why we like you so much! :)

Life is hard and being a Mom trying to raise godly children and run a household is really hard, but the Lord is good to see us through.

I hope you can be comforted by the fact that many women are sending prayers and hugs your way through your blog.

Anonymous said...

Have you ever wondered why Super Nanny doesn't have children of her own? Being a real mommy is hard, and we all want to quit sometimes, yell less, love more, or maybe start over with new children that are totally selfless and perfect (can I hear an amen? anyone?) You are a wonderful REAL mom, and don't let the enemy deceive you into believing otherwise. Keep fighting the good fight, there really isn't anything else worth living for! Hugs and blessings to you!!