I happened to pick up this book at the bookstore the other day The Mommy Myth:The Idealization of Motherhood and How it Has Undermined Women. I'm a few chapters in and it is a very interesting read. The whole book is based on the premise that the past 30 years of media images about mothers raised mothering standards to impossible levels. The authors, Susan J. Douglas and Meredith W. Michaels look in depth at what advertising, magazines profiling celebrity moms, Dr. Spock, the government, and Republicans have done to make being a mom the hardest job in the world. They are both self-proclaimed "women libbers" and liberals (goes without saying), so a lot of it has that slant to it, but it is written with a lot of humor. They have done an AMAZING amount of research and have pages upon pages listing their sources. I haven't finished it yet, but so far I like what I see. It's definately awakening the women-libber inside of me. What I like about it is that they don't say that working or staying at home is either good nor bad. It's a choice, and that's what it should be. It's more like they are acknowledging that there is not much of a support system for moms, nobody wants to admit that sometimes, being a mom sucks big time.

We all struggle with these issues inside the home (ADMIT IT!! It does nobody any good to pretend that your life if perfect and your kids bring you nothing but joy and salvation!), and this book also looks at the bigger picture. I'm thinking this is a must read not just for moms, but for dads as well. Although, it probably won't change their outlook if they already think you have it so easy, some of the more "sensitive" types might see why us mom's are often nagging, bitchy, and tired. So check it out, you might like it.