Shame and Grace: You're Doing a Good Job

There are 5 pairs of nail clippers in our house,
I have lost 4 of them.
My husband has hidden the fifth pair to keep for himself. 
He will not let me use them. 
I have used other people's nail clippers. 
Tonight, I trimmed my toenails with the baby's tiny nail clippers.

I make my husband's lunch every night. 
I always put a note in for him. 
Yesterday, I found out that on several occasions, 
I have accidentally fed my husband wax paper. 
I did not get the "cheese separating paper" off the cheese when I made his sandwich - multiple times. 

I will not admit how many days in a row I have chosen sleep over a shower. 
Let's just say I should buy stock in dry shampoo. 

Sometimes, I look at other moms at the park or library or wherever and wonder how on earth they do it. How are they so fit? I haven't really worked out since before I was pregnant (so, over a year...). How do they look so put together? Are they using a better dry shampoo?  I'm also usually jealous that they don't have to work and have time to do lovely things like go to the gym or the pumpkin patch in the middle of the week. I once overheard a mom talking to another mom about how she gets up at 4am every day to make lunches, train for a marathon, and clean a bathroom if she has "extra time." I was too busy being concerned for her mental health to feel bad about myself that time. 

Women are so quick to compare themselves to other women. It's a sad product of our culture, and one in which women always lose.  I feel mothers can be WORSE about this. I compare myself to other moms, and I judge other moms. I also assume that I am being judged. We are quick to "mother-shame" ourselves and others. I see so much of this in the "crunchy mom" community and I find myself falling in to that trap often. It's difficult to remember that EVERYONE'S situation is different. But that's just it. Everyone's situation is different. When I see a mom standing there drinking her latte while her child has a meltdown, I assume she is being ridiculous. Maybe she has consoled her child through 15 meltdowns that day, and for her sanity, she just needs to drink a latte and wait THIS tantrum out. I know that when my child is having a melt down, I would love if it if someone handed me a latte and said "it's okay, you really are doing a good job." 

And THIS is my situation, and I'm doing the best I can. 
I go days without showering because that extra 15 minutes of sleep is needed for me in order to be able to spend another night up consoling a fussy 8 month old. 
I feed my husband wax paper sometimes. 
But I make his lunch, and he's said my notes make his whole day better,
even if they come with an oddly chewy sandwich. 
I have no good reason for loosing all the nail clippers. 
I loose things, and that's just who I am. 
I'm doing a good job most of the time.