Have we met? If so, you won't be surprised I picked up this book. Motherhood? Essays? Swear words? Call me Fraulein Maria 'cause those are a few of my favorite things!
I actually checked out this book because I literally judged a book by its cover. I was picking up a book about a serial killer at the library and this was next to the holds shelf. It had me at "pink grenade full of hearts." And the stuff about swear words. F-yeah, that got me, too.
What I found inside was a book that had me choking back a sob all the way through. There are stories about motherhood and marriage and why we should visit our grandparents. A story about how sad it is to say goodbye to your kids' elementary school when they move on to the next level. Essays that describe what marriage vows would look like if you wrote them 10 years or so after the wedding. What we think of the "hot chicks" who seem to dominate every phase of life. And, thoughts about how we'll someday miss the chaos and noise of a house full of young kids - even if we find ourselves cursing that chaos now.
This book cracked me wide open.
I haven't read many of them, but I know most books about motherhood can gloss over the madness. They tend to make us feel bad for wondering who we are aside from just breeders and glorified udder holders. This book acknowledges the uncertainties and insecurities, reminding us that feeling uncertain is what motherhood - parenthood - is really about. It's about teaching our kids to fly, then wanting to clip their wings when they do. It's honest and real and it made me wish my kids were newborns and also college seniors.
I loved it. And, whether you have young kids at home or grown kids who forget to call, there's something for you that will remind you of all that is overwhelmingly good - and, overwhelmingly hard - about this stage of life.
Maybe judging a book by its cover isn't so bad after all.
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