Mummascribbles meets…Misunderstood Mummy – Mummascribbles
Today we meet the lovely Michelle from Misunderstood Mummy. Thanks so much for taking part Michelle.
Tell me a little bit about yourself and your family.
My name is Michelle, I am 25 years old and live in Somerset. I am a fiancee to Ashley (we are getting married in december ‐ eek!) and a mummy to Betsy, 16 months. I live in a tiny town which is quite notorious for ‘small town syndrome’, but its ok really. I am originally from east London, we moved here when i was about 13. I have a sister who is 22, we argued and fought like mad when we were little but we get on alright now. I also have 3 brothers who are 15, 11 and 8. I am a support worker for adults with learning disabilities, a job which i have done since i was 18.
What do you like doing to be you, when you are not parenting, working (if you do), or blogging?
I have very little time for anything unrelated to parenting of late! I do love blogging, it is my absolute favourite thing to do. These two things aside, i love shopping, i could shop all day every day (however quite often lack of funds means this doesnt happen very often). I like eating out, seeing friends and girls nights out! I actually can’t think of much else i like doing to be me….. So i asked Ashley, who suggested I put any of the following; procrastinate, look at my phone, ruin his life, whinge, get what i want…… I think i will stop here.
What is your biggest achievement to date?
Everything Betsy. She will forever be my biggest and most amazing achievement. I still cannot believe that my body produced something so beautiful. My blog is a very close second!
From your own experiences, what do you find the hardest part of parenting and what is the easiest/most rewarding part?
If I’m honest, picking out a hardest ‘part’ is a bit difficult for me. There is so much i struggle with, so much Betsy throws at me on a daily basis to try and break me. But I think sleep deprivation could just about pip all of the others to the post. My bedtime is no later than 9pm every night. Weekday or weekend. Only on exceptionally special occasions do i stay up later. I hate it so much, that headachey sicky mind numbing feeling only a night spent dealing with a refusing to sleep baby can bring on. I miss my sleep so much. There isn’t much in this world i would choose over a decent night of undisturbed, wake when i want sleep.
The most rewarding part is seeing Betsy grow and learn new things. Every new word (or at least her version of a word) makes me so proud, she is getting so clever!
Parenting in itself is no mean feat; how do you juggle everything you need to in order to get everything done on a daily basis?
With great difficulty! I work two days a week, which if i am honest provides me with a much needed break from my monster! i rely heavily on my amazing mother in law who helps me out a lot, whether it be housework or taking me somewhere or just taking Betsy for a couple of hours when its all getting a bit much! I also cram as much into Betsy’s naptime as i possibly can! She usually naps for around 2 hours in the morning, this is my time to get myself sorted, get the house in some kind of order, prepare lunch, catch up on my blog and anything else that needs to be done. I have no idea how i am going to cope when she drops her nap…. I am hoping and praying it will not happen for a LONG time!
Why did you decide to start blogging?
I was inspired by other blogs. I found solace in blogs when going through tough times, just knowing that someone else has experienced what i was feeling was so comforting. I wanted to be able to provide that to someone else. I also really love writing. I wanted to have something that i can look back on, somewhere to store all my memories and thoughts. I find it so theraputic getting everything out. In ‘real life’ i find it so difficult to open up about something that is bothering me, or explain how i am feeling.
Tell me a bit about your blog?
I am still very much a newbie blogger, and finding my feet. I write a lot about my daughter, the trials and tribulations of raising a child. Days when she is a nightmare child, tough patches we are going through, and the nice days i have with her. Things i struggle with and have struggled with. I suffer with depression and anxiety, and i have felt writing about that helps, so there are a mix of things i blog about. At the moment i don’t host any link ups, though i try to take part in as many as i can! I love them. They are such a great way to find other amazing blogs to read.
What do you want your blog to achieve and where do you hope to see it go as it grows?
I would love it to be able to help someone. For someone who is having a bad day to stumble across it and find something they relate to. Something that helps them, that makes them realise they are not alone! I have so many things i want for my blog, but mainly as it grows i would just like it to continue growing! I would love to one day have my own link ups too. I have no idea what it would be, but i just love the thought of having people link up to something i create
What advice would you give someone who is thinking about starting a blog?
DO IT! I spent so so long being too afraid to do one, thinking i’d be rubbish or that i just could ‘do it’, but it is possibly the best thing i have ever done and i feel so silly for worrying!! Other bloggers i have interacted with are so friendly, I often have no idea what i am doing and twitter is so full of people willing to help.
If you could have dinner with three people (dead or alive), who would it be and why?
1. Prince William and Kate (i can count those as 1 can’t i…..?)
2. Taylor Swift (MASSIVE girl crush)
3. Ashley’s grandad. He sadly passed away before i met Ashley, but i have heard so many brilliant stories about him from Ashley and his family, and i would have loved to have met him.
Tell me three random facts about you
1. I am allergic to plasters.
2. I am shockingly clumsy, and almost kill myself tripping over various things (sometimes nothing at all) on a daily basis. I put this down to my foot size to height ratio ‐ 5ft10 and size 6. Apparently it isn’t very common to have such small feet for someone so long!
3. I attended a total of 6 different schools. We moved around a lot!
You can find Michelle over at www.misunderstoodmummy.blogspot.co.uk and also on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram