I have been wondering recently why it is that women want to segregate themselves into two very distinct camps. First, we have the yummy mummies, you know the ones - perfect hair, perfect kids and perfect homes. Think Stepford wives and the typical commercial housewife of the 1950s. Then come their polar opposite in the scummy mummies - these are the mums who feel they can never quite achieve yummy mummy status and therefore why bother with the effort, just label yourself a scummy mummy and you have a get-out clause to not worry about the house or your personal appearance.
Well, I refuse to fall into either one of these categories. You can just call me 'A Mummy'. Sometimes yummy, when I have the energy and can be arsed to make an effort and sometimes my house is completely scummy, like at those times when life just gets on top of me and I know the best thing to let go of is the housework. No one is going to get hurt because my shower needs a jolly good scrub after all!
Yes, that really is my scummy shower before I spent over an hour on Monday with a brillo pad
and a jar of astonish - it worked a treat!
So why do we label ourselves? Where does this pressure come from? Why can't we all just be mummies together and accept we are all unique and imperfect beings. Are labels like this ever helpful? I seriously doubt it.
I expect some of the pressure is media-induced, of course, celebs exasperate the situation by pinging back into their size 8 jeans a week after having their babies and the addition of a chef, housekeeper and nanny would all make the aim of being a yummy mummy considerably easier. But really, do we have to buy into this media rubbish? Well, our lives are considerably better if we live in sterile beige homes with kids dressed in Boden and mummy is a beautiful slim walking advert for Gap?
NO. I am making a stand. I refuse to be labelled. My name is Michelle and I am a real person, a real Mummy. Sometimes I am brilliant, you can call me SuperMich and my kids must think all their Christmases have come at once and other times I am absolutely crap and I just want to stay in my PJs and slouch for the day.
Do you know what they call that? Normal, average, OK, regular, run-of-the-mill, mediocre and they all work for me.....
Who are you? Have you thought about that lately?