Daily Struggles Only Moms Will Understand

1. You will NEVER sleep in as much as you want

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You’ve had a busy week, so you were hoping to finally catch up on some sleep at the weekend. But your kids will have different plans! They will start crying, wake you up because they want to show you something, or want food and cartoons. The list goes on. And unfortunately, this will happen for a long time until your kids grow up. No wonder moms are permanently sleepy.

2. Going to the toilet alone is a rare thing

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If you’re home alone with the kids and you dare to need the bathroom, your little one will probably start crying or freaking out if they don’t know where you are. So naturally, they’ll want to come along with you. You might try and get them to sit outside the door while you do your thing, but chances are, they’ll just come bouncing in the room and sit with you. Sound familiar?

3. As is going to the supermarket

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If you’re a mom who can go to the supermarket alone – lucky you! For a lot of single moms, or for those who don’t get much help from their partners, a solo trip to the grocery store is a rare thing. You might try and be organized and have your list of things to buy ready and waiting, but if you have to take your kids with you, they might decide to make a mess of a display, grab fruit from a shelf, or have a screaming fit in the middle of the aisle.

4. It's a mission to go out with your pals

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Before you had kids, you were a social butterfly. You’d be at every event, organizing cute trips out for your friends, and be able to catch up with the whole gang on the weekend. But those days are gone now. Your kids are the priority, and you can guarantee there will be some sort of emergency the minute you try and catch up with your friends. While it’s definitely still important to have adult friendships and conversations, you know deep down that you wouldn’t have it any other way!

5. And when you DO see them, you only talk about your kids

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If you’ve managed to work a small miracle and you’ve actually made it out with your friends, chances are, you’ll fall into the classic parent trap; you can’t stop talking about your kids. It happens a lot, and while some friends will be totally fine with it, others will try to remind you that, you know, conversations other than children exist. Which might seem hard to believe sometimes!

6. You only listen to music your kids listen to

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When someone asks you if you’ve heard that super-cool band’s new album, they may as well have asked a brick wall. The only music you’re exposed to these days is your kid's music; silly songs from cartoons, rhymes from a new toy they’ve got, or a children’s album of music that they want to listen to on repeat in the car. And some moms even listen to their kid’s music even when their children aren’t there (yes, we mean you).

7. You can't remember when you last sat down for 15 minutes

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Your weeks are a blur. You’re busy sorting your kids like all day, every day for weeks on end, and you can’t remember the last time you had 15 minutes to yourself. Even sitting in the car as your partner or family drives you somewhere feels like a treat, as you actually get to sit by yourself and catch a few Z's without a child clambering on top of you. Welcome to moms world…

8. If your kid has gone quiet, it's never a good sign

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This will be an all-too-familiar scenario for moms everywhere. When you think you’ve finally got some peace to eat a few bites of lunch or get some chores done, the eerie silence in the house gets you spooked. Your kids will be up to something – and it won’t be anything good. They might have drawn all over your walls, cleared out your makeup drawer and emptied it on the floor, or unrolled all the toilet paper. The joys of motherhood, eh?

9. Your living room is covered in toys

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Remember when you used to have a clean, minimalist house? Those were the days. Now, your home resembles a kid’s nursery. There are toys absolutely everywhere, which means you can’t take a few steps without setting off a musical game or standing on Lego. And you’ll have to constantly battle with your kids to get them to tidy up after themselves, because toys just put themselves away, right?

10. You can't remember the last time you watched a movie

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Even before you had children, getting through a movie could sometimes be difficult (because let’s face it – we’ve all dozed off a few minutes into a film at some point!). Nowadays though, you can’t even remember having the time to put a movie on, let alone get through the entire thing. And if a movie DOES get played, it’s probably going to be something for your kids.

11. You won't have worn much other than leggings, yoga pants or jeans in over a year

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After you’ve had kids, comfort is king. Which means sweatpants, leggings, yoga pants and jeans. They’re easy to throw on in the morning (and take off rapidly when your kid decides to spit up on you). And while you might have thought about buying one of those gorgeous floaty dresses everyone’s wearing right now, you know it’ll last just a few seconds before it gets ruined.

12. You're surviving on coffee

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Coffee is a mom’s friend. It helps you function and get through your day, even when you’ve had less than three hours of precious sleep. It’ll be by your side as your kid has yet another tantrum, and again when they decide that they’re going to get up and charge around the entire house at 4am. Thank you, caffeine – we don’t know where we’d be without you.

13. You finally have peace when your kid is asleep

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So it’s finally bedtime. Your kid is happily asleep, which means you can crack on with all those things you want to do. You get to watch a teeny-tiny bit of TV and eat a few treats, which the best me-time moms will sometimes get. Enjoy it while it lasts, as you’ll probably hear the pitter-patter of small feet coming towards you after a couple of hours.

14. Your purse is the size of a standard suitcase

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A mom’s purse needs to contain a LOT of stuff; tissues, baby wipes, diapers, spare items of clothing, food, drinks and snacks, and a bottle of water. And that’s just for starters! So it's no great surprise that moms tend to favor the biggest handbags they can possibly find – and even then, they still might need to bring another bag full of supplies!

15. The last 3,984 photos on your phone are of your kids

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You might have once taken loads of snaps of you and your friends on days out, or beautiful scenery as you went on vacation with your partner. Nowadays, your phone will just be packed with pictures of your kids. And while this is definitely natural by today’s standards, just be careful what you show online or through social media. It’s important to respect your kid's privacy.

16. There are unidentifed stains and sticky spots around your house

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Moms will be all too familiar with this one. If you can eventually find your floor or rooms after clearing all those toys away, you’ll be presented with interesting new stains, which your children absolutely promise they had nothing to do with. And while it may be the case that ‘the dog did it’, your pooch would definitely have a hard time of finding the painting pots, opening the lids and leaving finger marks all over the door…

17. You're used to eating dinner at 5pm

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Back in the day, you’d eat late. You might go out on a date with friends or partner at a cute restaurant, or cook yourself something nice after coming back from the gym. But now you have kids, dinner is at 5pm, as you’ll need to bundle them into bed at a decent time. You’ll find yourself picking at the bits of food your kids refused to eat, and that might be the last thing you eat before you fall asleep yourself. Motherhood really is a gift.

18. You have to move all the bathtoys out the way before you can shower

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Yep, more toys. They’re in every other room in the house, so why wouldn’t they be in the bathroom too? Plus, you need to bribe your kids to take a bath now and then, and keep them entertained while you hurriedly scrub them clean. And even when you are finally getting a chance to shower, you can guarantee a tiny visitor will want to come and say hello…

19. You accidently cut up your own dinner into tiny pieces

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Most moms tend to go on autopilot now and then. So when the kids have finally decided to go to sleep and you can manage to eat your own dinner in peace, you find yourself cutting up your entire meal into teeny tiny pieces – just like you would for your children. But no matter – at least you’re managing to get some food without too the kids distracting you!

20. You pee a little when you cough, laugh or sneeze

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This will be the reality for most moms out there. After giving birth, your body will never be the same again – and there will be a few new things going on to keep you on your toes. If you happen to sneeze, cough, or laugh, you might need to brace your bladder a bit, as things won’t be as secure as they once were. Invest in some heavy duty liners, and be sure to keep an eye out for the nearest bathroom.

21. Sick days get used up for kids illnesses

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Remember when your sick days were just for you? Nowadays, the time you need to take off usually revolves around your kids. While it’s rare to even get sick days at some companies, they’re now a lot more valuable after giving birth and going through a pandemic! Kids often get sick thanks to bugs going around at school and at nursery, and it sometimes feels like a constant cycle of germs, coughs and sneezes.

22. We don't have it in us to socialize after work

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While it would be nice to spend some time having a couple of casual drinks with your colleagues, you just don’t have it in you these days. Your tiredness is at a level you never experienced pre-children, and you just don’t have the energy to socialize. Plus, you need to get home for the kids, get dinner sorted, and tuck them up in bed at a decent time.

23. Makeup is for special occasions

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Makeup is a thing of the past. Okay – maybe a bit actually makes it on the face for special events. But it’s a nightmare to get yourself together with a kid or two in tow, so lots of mamas decided to embrace the au naturelle look. Because let’s face it – the most pressing thing in the morning isn’t going to be your makeup – it’s getting the kids to daycare on time!

24. Drying your hair is a thing of the past

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Remember how you meticulously washed, dried and styled your hair before you had kids? Those luscious locks aren’t quite what they used to be, as you’re now usually having to have a shower of 30 seconds before you get interrupted. If you DO actually manage to wash your hair, you can say goodbye to drying it – your never-ending schedule means a messy wet bun will have to do.

25. Vacations bring a world of stress

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Even before kids, vacations could be stressful. But things get a lot more anxiety-inducing if you dare to take your little ones away – especially if you’re going on a plane. Your kids can get scared, struggle with the air pressure, cry, whine and generally play up for the whole duration of the flight – all while your fellow passengers give you daggers.

26. Awkward explanations

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Every mom out there will have dealt with tons of awkward questions from the kids. Whether they put you on the spot about how babies are made, or ask about why the sky is blue or cows moo, you will find yourself in numerous situations where you can’t give your kids the answers they want. And you’ll definitely need to hold back the laughter now and then!

27. The struggle of picture day

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Picture day often strikes fear in a mom’s heart. Can my kids actually look presentable this year? And can they sit still long enough to actually have the picture taken? If you can somehow manage to get your kids to look at the camera long enough and smile, you’re on to a winner. Just don’t expect them not to pull a weird face now and then – just like this little girl!

28. Going WAY above and beyond

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Being a mom is really hard work. You’ll need to continuously go beyond in every possible way for your children, which means letting your kids wipe their mouths on your shirt, wee and poop all over you, sneeze into your food, and ruin your entire house. It’s all part of the miracle of motherhood – but you know you wouldn’t ever change it for the world.

29. Any item can be turned into a weapon

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Moms will know all too well that while you try and encourage your kids to be pacifists, the fact remains that kids can run wild. There seems to be some unspoken rule that kids need to pretend to have guns, which means they will try and ‘shoot’ each other or play fight at any opportunity. They don’t even need to have anything that resembles a gun; whether it’s a banana, a toilet roll or a pencil, they’ll be holding it to fire.

30. Every day is another victory

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You know you and your fellow moms have your work cut out. Which is why every day is a victory. You go through all the stress, mess, tiredness and anxiety, but it’s all worth it when you get to see your kids grow, and have those precious cuddles and laughs with them at the end of the day. You might think you’re not doing an amazing job as a mom, but you’re absolutely smashing it!