Today, I took Isla to the mall. I don't know if I have ever been to the mall on a weekday morning, but apparently, the only people who go to the mall at this time are moms with young children. I spoke to two mothers with children under three months of age. I asked both of them, giving them that knowing look that only moms of young children can exchange, 'how are you doing?'.
When I was a new mom, I welcomed this question. I relished it. I would tell other mothers, 'It is so much harder than I thought it would be', and they would smile and say, 'hang in there, it gets better'. I clung to those words and that feeling of comradery this statement entailed.
However, both the moms I met today, answered my question with gushing responses about how much they love being a mom and what a joy there baby has been. This was not the response I was expecting. So here is my question. Was I just a bad new mommy or are these other new mommies lying?
