It’s your child birthday, hooray! They’re one year older and wiser, but lets be real about WHY they get to celebrate this special day. It’s because you, their mother, brought them into this world. You went through the ordeal we all know as pregnancy. You dealt with the vomiting, food aversions, food cravings, the contouring of your body, the swelling, the sleepless nights, the list goes on and on. Yet when the time comes it’s that child that gets all the celebration fun. Don’t get me wrong, they deserve it, they survived another year. They grew, and changed as a person and that’s great. But what about mama! Heck, what about dad? Those poor fathers deal with their own set of problems too. However, mama’s are usually left in the dust and debris of their child’s party wondering what the heck happened and where the last year went. Folks, it’s time to change this pattern of behavior and make this more than a birthday celebration and start embracing “The Birthing Day” celebration idea. 

I know that I’m not the only one with a story like this. I know there are others that have struggled much more than I ever could imagine, and I know there are others who love pregnancy and have a relatively easy go of it. Either way, the birth of a child is a such a magical, miracle that each child and pregnancy deserves to be celebrated. I’m not saying we need to combine these events into one big shindig. Still have that birthday party and celebrate the life of that child. However, I am saying celebrate you and your partner as well. Make a mimosa while your kiddo naps or is at school. You made a human, celebrate it! Go out as a family for a nice “Birthing Day” dinner if you can swing it. Bring home flowers for your wife, or get your husband a nice bottle of bourbon for being a great dad. Do simple, little things that show that this was a team effort and that everyone involved deserves a pat on the back. You can make this day as simple or as extravagant as you see fit. Just remember to focus on what it is your actually celebrating. 

Now I can see where some people may not fully grasp this concept, or see me a selfish in some way but that is not the point of celebrating. The point is to acknowledge the fact that pregnancy is hard work. Child birth in every form is hard work. Parenting is hard work. I don’t think we celebrate our victories in this life enough. I truly feel if it were acknowledged people would possibly feel better about how their doing in this whole parenting/marriage/relationship/single parenting thing we do as humans. There is so much pressure in our world to be these perfect mothers and fathers that we loose sight of what’s truly important. We loose sight of the fact that these children are gifts. That two people got together and created life. These are amazing things and shining a light on that isn’t a bad thing. The birth and life of a child something worth talking about and celebrating, so why not celebrate the people that made it happen in the first place?

With that said, I’ll leave you with a couple question. Do you feel differently about celebrating your “Birthing Day” after reading this? Will you start celebrating your “Birthing Day” going forward? I’d love to hear your responses friends!