Why can't we just....

 Not be so hard on ourselves?  Acknowledge that doing the best that we can is just that, the best we can.  This week I've been struck by the number of expectations that we put on ourselves, and that sometimes as women in particular, we put on each other. 
My oldest is less than two years old.  I am just dipping my toe into the world of parenting, the world that requires me to do more than just love and nurture my precious baby.  I am just starting to think about things like discipline, sharing, and boundaries.  I always knew they were part of the gig, and maybe I even tricked myself into thinking I was already practicing these things, but I know now that I was wrong.  It has only been in the last few weeks that I have stopped to think, "I'm not sure how I should respond to this behavior / action / emotion".  And in the aftermath of these first few moments I have already lost sleep over how I reacted.  I was too strict, too lenient, too reactive, too passive.  Too exhausted just thinking about it!
The reality is this whole mommy thing is a learning process, for the mommy and baby, right?  Sure, Warren might be learning that he needs to share his toys, or sit at the table to eat, but I'm learning too.  It's ok that we don't have all the answers yet, we have at least the next 18 years if not the rest of our lives to figure them out.  Our shot at being a good parent isn't blown by not knowing exactly what to do in these first few moments.
Breast feeding.  How have we, woman to woman, made each other feel like a failure if this is a struggle, or doesn't work?  Over and over I am talking to moms who are in tears over the pressure that they feel to breast feed successfully.  Let's stop and realize that these first few months and years are all just part of the process of us becoming mothers, and our babies becoming individuals.  We will continue to influence them for the rest of our lives, and we don't have to get it right all day, every day.  An old friend of mine used to say, "the pro is in the process".  That is still my favorite saying, and I draw on it often.  I don't want to be so worried about the end result that I miss the process, because that is where life is happening. 
Take a look at those sweet babies, are they loved?  Then let's forgive ourselves for everything we think we have done or are doing wrong, because if they are loved we are doing the best thing of all.