Here’s a shocker... I didn’t cook breakfast either.

I had this perfect image of what I was going to be like as a wife and a mother. I would wear an apron, and prepare a home cooked breakfast and dinner every morning and evening.

I PROMISED myself, I would never be too busy to do this... and then I was.

I just pulled out two uncrustables to thaw out for dinner, and you know what? I don’t even care.

We don’t have to succumb to the picture perfect outline of what we think we should be as wives and mothers.

We eat granola bars for breakfast, and some nights, I let my kid eat so many snacks, that she has no interest in actual dinner.

I thought for so long I would be an unsuccessful mother and wife for not having a set cleaning schedule or not cooking every single meal at home. This literally has zero relevance to my motherly abilities, and I desperately need to stop beating myself up for it every single day.

It's not even society doing this to me, IT'S ME. We are our hardest critics. My husband has never once shamed me for not cooking or cleaning. My kid has never gone to sleep hungry or cold.

The things that matter are not always the actions we expect of ourselves, but the actions we ACTUALLY act on.

I love my family so hard, and THAT is what makes me a good wife and a good mother. It is the ONLY requirement to be a “good mom” and the ONLY thing you should focus your energy on. The rest will come. The house won’t be dirty forever, the laundry will get done, and frozen pizza is fine for dinner tonight.

Give yourself a break. Remember there’s a perfect balance somewhere between crazy and beautiful. As for my family, we lay somewhere in the middle.

-Amanda @ mommaeverafter.com