The News broadcast was even kind enough to hold a segment to educate women across Australia on how we to could look just like Miranda. Wow!! Enlightening!!!
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| Exhibit A |
The next day as I was getting my daily fix of social media (as you do) I was greeted with the latest images of Sarah Jessica Parker's Vogue shoot with her family. In this article SJP was telling women around the world how she tries hard to juggle children, charity work, acting, producing, school drops offs, being a mother, being a friend and a daughter and just trying to be a wife. Ground breaking!!!
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| Exhibit B |
Today's media does an exceptional job at convincing us we are not good enough. It is called "Emotional Marketing" with global and multi-national companies spending millions of marketing dollars appealing to our vulnerable sides. Todays woman is contantly shown pictures of amazing model glamazons who are back on catwalks 6 weeks after giving birth, celebrities who are gracing magazines with there picture perfect children and McMansions. Each image when combined together can often provide a confusing image of what society expects the perfect woman to be......perfect dinner parties where we cook like a Master Chef, knowing what wine selection to give at dinner to complement the seafood we are presenting, size 6 designer clothes that show amazing figures, perfectly mannered children with lots of rooms to hide them in when they become to noisy, showing the appearance that we can hold high flying careers all while raising a fully functional family and being a designer Stepford wife with a constant smile on our face from ear to ear.
Yet in my house and I am guessing like most others reality is quite different. I have had 2 children & put on a combined weight of 23kg's for both pregnancies of which I have honestly only lost 8 kg's. I remember when the girls were babies living in track pants for what felt like an eternity and only really brushing my hair when I had friends coming over. My main sustenance was coffee as sleep was a thing of the past and dinner consisted of anything that didn't take longer than 20 minutes and I could make lots of so I didn't need to cook the next night.
I could blame my children at this point for my excess weight, lumps and bumps but in reality lots of sweets, cakes and chocolate have contributed over the years. My budget does not stretch to designer clothes and they are definately not a size 6, Target is my store of choice unless Myer is having a great sale. I love to cook but prepare meals that I know my family will eat and not whinge and whine there way through as I don't want to listen to this at the end of the day. My bra selection is more about support these days than looking irristable for my husband, unless he finds cotton Bonds impossible to refuse. My toilet & bathroom could probably be cleaned more than I do it and my furniture has stains from years of children climbing over it or spilling food on it. I to try and cram to much into my day and often do my best work between the hours of 10pm and 2am when there are no distractions.
Most times my children won't listen to me until I am screaming at the top of my voice and turning purple. Then ever so casually they will get up and do what I have asked them to do after repeating myself 5 times at a minimum, remembering to tell me on the way past I have Anger Management issues. On an overly chatty day my 14 year old will string more than 6 sentances together that will not contain a grunt and if we are really lucky will thrown in a smile to remind us her mouth can still move that way. As much as I have tried to convince her that pink for her room would be really nice she has covered her walls in band posters that would give me nightmares for a week if I slept in there.
My life is in stark contrast to the glossy images that fill our magazines yet I feel I am real and a honest representation of who I am. Would I love my own McMansion one day? If I had a team of cleaners. Would I love to wear the latest designer fashion from the Catwalks of Milan? Sure if they are free and come in a size 14-16. Would I love stain free immaculate furniture - perhaps?
The world is filled with bigger better objects I would like or things I would just like more of. My life is not perfect but I welcome the imperfections, my children are happy, healthy and adjusted, my friends make me laugh and let me drink to much wine with them, my husband makes me love and appreciate and ramble on when I have a need, my family makes me feel wanted and I am comfortable being me.
So I will continue to look at the glossy images in these magazines as I drink my coffee and down way to many Tim Tams and learn to appreciate my life for what it is and know that at least I am living very much in reality.
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| Exhibit C - what ladies you don't look like this at School Pick Up? |
Yet in my house and I am guessing like most others reality is quite different. I have had 2 children & put on a combined weight of 23kg's for both pregnancies of which I have honestly only lost 8 kg's. I remember when the girls were babies living in track pants for what felt like an eternity and only really brushing my hair when I had friends coming over. My main sustenance was coffee as sleep was a thing of the past and dinner consisted of anything that didn't take longer than 20 minutes and I could make lots of so I didn't need to cook the next night.
I could blame my children at this point for my excess weight, lumps and bumps but in reality lots of sweets, cakes and chocolate have contributed over the years. My budget does not stretch to designer clothes and they are definately not a size 6, Target is my store of choice unless Myer is having a great sale. I love to cook but prepare meals that I know my family will eat and not whinge and whine there way through as I don't want to listen to this at the end of the day. My bra selection is more about support these days than looking irristable for my husband, unless he finds cotton Bonds impossible to refuse. My toilet & bathroom could probably be cleaned more than I do it and my furniture has stains from years of children climbing over it or spilling food on it. I to try and cram to much into my day and often do my best work between the hours of 10pm and 2am when there are no distractions.
Most times my children won't listen to me until I am screaming at the top of my voice and turning purple. Then ever so casually they will get up and do what I have asked them to do after repeating myself 5 times at a minimum, remembering to tell me on the way past I have Anger Management issues. On an overly chatty day my 14 year old will string more than 6 sentances together that will not contain a grunt and if we are really lucky will thrown in a smile to remind us her mouth can still move that way. As much as I have tried to convince her that pink for her room would be really nice she has covered her walls in band posters that would give me nightmares for a week if I slept in there.
My life is in stark contrast to the glossy images that fill our magazines yet I feel I am real and a honest representation of who I am. Would I love my own McMansion one day? If I had a team of cleaners. Would I love to wear the latest designer fashion from the Catwalks of Milan? Sure if they are free and come in a size 14-16. Would I love stain free immaculate furniture - perhaps?
The world is filled with bigger better objects I would like or things I would just like more of. My life is not perfect but I welcome the imperfections, my children are happy, healthy and adjusted, my friends make me laugh and let me drink to much wine with them, my husband makes me love and appreciate and ramble on when I have a need, my family makes me feel wanted and I am comfortable being me.
So I will continue to look at the glossy images in these magazines as I drink my coffee and down way to many Tim Tams and learn to appreciate my life for what it is and know that at least I am living very much in reality.
Nanna Lush x
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