Let’s be honest, I spend the better part of my days trying to remember that what we do as moms every single day is extraordinary.
We love, we teach, we nurture, we stay up late in to the night to coddle sick small ones, we chauffeur to school, from soccer games, to dance class, from swim meets, to softball tournaments, and from guitar lessons.
We try to be patient for heaven’s sake.
We make lunches, we schedule play dates, we juggle work, family and kid’s needs and we….well…. sometimes we lose it. And we feel as though we have failed mightily. We would prefer to sit in a corner and cry ourselves to sleep than sit by the sidelines for one more game, than help with one more ounce of how-have-I-forgotten-to-do-5th-grade-math-homework, than argue with our children about the vegetables being served for dinner. We don’t want to play nice. In fact, you just might be one monster melt-down away from selling the whole brood on eBay….. (I jest. Sort of.)
Sometimes you simply need to know you are not alone and laughter is, without a doubt, the antidote you need. And likely the only thing that might keep you from raiding the wine fridge. At 2pm.
Enter the hilarious and often wildly inappropriate Sh*tty Mom: The Parenting Guide for the Rest of Us. When you reach that parenting moment that brings you to tears, this book will swing you wickedly in the other direction, bursting instead, with laughter. You’ll start the book by taking a ‘Sh*tty Mom Quiz’ just to see how you measure up (or down as the case may be). It is in these first few moments that you realize the authors are prepping you to feel both part of the ‘in-crowd’ and not so bad about your parenting all at the same time.
Authored by Emmy nominated comedian, Laurie Kilmartin, journalist and author Karen Moline and amazing TV Producers (and women I adore) Alicia Ybarbo and Mary Ann Zoellner, the book feels like the series of conversations you would have with your best girlfriend as you attempt to rationalize every difficult moment of parenting – from getting that awkward mom to leave during a first playdate (why is she trying to stay?) to why-oh-why are you stuck with your crying baby on this STUPID airplane? (I used stupid… the language in Sh*tty Mom is, dare I say, more colorful and a lot more entertaining).
Not for the easily offended (language, people, language), this book is one part how-to-survive and one part don’t-worry-you’ve-got-it. You’ll feel alternately relieved (See: How to Sleep In Until 9am Every Weekend) as you realize other moms occasionally pull off ‘sh*tty’ parenting just like you (or is that just me?) and smug (How to Leave Your Baby in the Car and Dash in to 7-Eleven) as you think, ‘I would NEVER‘….
I laughed out loud as I read. And after reading one chapter in particular, I actually DO feel better about leaving my kids when I need to go on a business trip. And for the love of all things holy… I’m not the only mom who doesn’t love the zoo? Amen. I’m smiling as I type. The chapters are short, perfect for the mom who is constantly being interrupted.
And for the mom who refuses to be interrupted.
I suggest you add some belly laughing to your day. Of course, you can find Sh*tty Mom online to learn more about the book. For loads of fun, you can follow the hilarious authors on Twitter (@ShttyMom) and naturally, you can buy the book on Amazon or at your favorite local bookstore.
