This When Life Gives You Lemonade post is to remind you that life is GOOD. It is also in partnership with Minute Maid but all opinions and thoughts expressed are my own.
Selfies. I love them and while this one only took us two tries to get it “perfect”, that is usually not the case. One person isn’t smiling, another is looking somewhere else or maybe one of us has our eyes closed. It can be a bit frustrating trying to get it “just right” but such is life, especially when you have kids.
As parents, just when you think you have it all together, life happens and you are reminded that you don’t. Something will happen with the kids and just when I think I have it handled, something else happens. In an instant, I go from feeling like an awesome parent to feeling like a pretty bad one. You ever feel that way?
I used to feel even worse when I’d go online and see families that look like they have it all together. You know the photos where the family is nicely dressed, they have these big smiles and are standing in front of the perfect backdrop. You look at pictures and think that with those smiles, they must never argue or have any problems. They look like they have it all together while you are sitting in bed with mixed match pajamas and some chocolate after a long day with the kids.
We forget that people typically choose to share their highlight reel (only sharing the photos that make their family look the best) instead of the nitty gritty of life. They’re not sharing their reality and, if we are honest, we don’t always do that either. Do you post a picture on social media without editing it or adding a filter? How many pictures did you have to take to get that perfect one?
None of that matters when I am with my family, especially during our family dinners. It’s the time of the day where we gather as a family and we let it all go. We unplug from the rest of the world (with no cell phones at the table) and we invest in one another and spend time together as a family.
As we navigate our way through parenting in a time where social media is a factor, I want you to remember that…
- You should cut yourself some slack, no one is perfect. No one’s family is perfect.
- Try to accept the moment for what it is. You never know if that chaotic moment you experienced today becomes your most cherished moment tomorrow.
- What you see on social media isn’t the whole picture.
That’s why when I saw the Minute Maid survey, I realized I’m not the only parent with these struggles. The survey uncovers how parents are using social media to share their family online. Here are the findings:
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- 94% of parents who post pictures or videos of their family on social media admit to posing or staging at least one of them.
- More than one-third (36%) of parents who post pictures or videos of their family on social media admit to staging or posing most or nearly all of them.
- 43% of parents who use social media agree they only post flattering photos or videos of their family on social media.
- More than four-in-five (81%) of parents who post pictures or videos of their family on social media admit they have avoided posting a picture or video because something embarrassing was in the background, and 80% of parents have avoided posting because their house looked messy.
That is why I love that Minute Maid is launching a new brand campaign, “this is GOOD”, to encourage parents to share more of their real family moments on social media. I find it refreshing that this campaign encourages parents to celebrate their real lives. Life isn’t always perfect, but even in the messy, chaotic moments you can find joy so, us parents should proudly be saying this is GOOD. Cheers to that!
