Momfidence! - Hot Moms, Revisited

About this Blog

Momfidence! cheers on commonsense parenting and sighs at the rest. How to worry less, wing it more. A.k.a. parenting by the seat of my mid-rise mom jeans.

About Paula Spencer

I'm the author of Momfidence! An Oreo Never Killed Anybody and Other Secrets of Happier Parenting, and a mom of four in Chapel Hill, North Carolina (where you can't even buy Oreos at the two wholesome groceries nearest to my home).

Some Kindred Blogs

Parentopia On mommy guilt
The Mother of All Blogs My fave fellow mom of four
MommaBlog in FotosLooks like my house
Parent Talk Today Kindred writer
Momformation ParentCenter
FreeRangeKidsSet them free!
Jane Austen Addict For diversion
Diet Naked For inspiration
Dr. Helen For conversation
BlythTimes For smart insights
LifeCoachBlog for positive reminders
Plan B for thinkin' past motherhood
Self Caring Caregiver blog I also write
College-path (trust me, eventually, you'll be there!)

Hot Moms, Revisited

March 18, 2009

I first wrote about the "hot mom" trend in a January 2007 WD column (not online apparently but here's the blog discussion) and before that in Momfidence, the book. The new term "momshell" -- from "bombshell," and now applied to the poor First Lady, -- hadn't been coined yet.

Isn't that a weird word? Makes me think of "shellshocked" (like what a new mom can feel like) and "bomb shelter" (like what a house with young kids can feel like). Or the brittle shell of trying to be all things to all people. Or a creature from a Sea World vacation.

Maybe it's just me, hot 'n bothered once again. And still not wearing platform heels and stovepipes for my afternoon extracurricular wrangling.

Comments

Denise says...

Well! After reading all the comments from your blog discussion I would agree that the word "hot" has a completely sexual connotation these days and thanks to all the media + celeb stuff thrown at us everyday mums that the pressure to be all to all and to do it all and have it all is just too much. I think we need to look at women being women in all shapes and sizes, and that a woman can look just as sexy in a full piece swimmers as in a bikini and sometimes more so. If the divide between "hot" and frumpy were not so great and we insert elegance - which to me is tastefully dressed for our shape and age then we have confidence. If we are happy with our lot in life and take the time to brush our hair and put on some comfortable but tasteful clothes then we feel better about ourselves. Hot unfortunately for most women means inpracticable to most of us. I enjoy exercise but it is for me no one else. My husband sees me as hot and sometimes other men do too. I never go out of my way to look that way and am covered usually from head to toe. Wear clothes that flatter you and have a hairstyle that is easy, practical and looks good on you. This combined with true internal happiness is "hot".

Denise says...

....I thought we got to leave all this "peer pressure" back with our school days. Do we once again have to be put in a labelled box "frumpy" or "momshell"? Once we start to compare ourselves with others we find we always fall short. We are all made - in my belief anyway- in the "image of God", all unique and special in our own way. All our bits and pieces - whether we like them or not - are part of what makes us who we are both inside and out. By covering up we create a mystery that our partners alone are privy to. Unfortunately society dictates that a womans worth is determined by what she wears, how she wears it and what she looks like - not what she does with her life. this is the part that most frustrates me.

Steph says...

Momfidence is...looking no further for role models than the women behind you in your family tree.

*Sorry to hijack your catchphrase, Paula. ;-)

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