‘Bachelorette’ Star Ali Fedotowsky Opens Up About Struggles as Mom of Two
Having a newborn is hard. Having a newborn and a toddler is often even harder—something TV personality, mom blogger and mother of two Ali Fedotowsky-Manno is discovering for herself. In a super-honest blog post, she admits feeling angry that her husband gets to go off to work while she’s stuck at home without a break.
Fedotowsky-Manno and husband Kevin Manno have a 2-year-old daughter, Molly, 2, and a 9-week-old son, Riley. Manno has returned to his radio job, but Fedotowsky-Manno is still on maternity leave and says adjusting to life as a mom of two has been stressful without an extra set of hands around to help.
“Trying to keep up with my business endeavors, run my blog and take care of my two small children has really proved to be the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” she writes. “I don’t even know if I can say it’s something I’m ‘doing’ because I feel like I’m not even accomplishing it. I just feel like I’m failing at it.”
She goes on to describe a scenario so many moms can relate to.
“Yesterday was literally the first time I’ve showered in a week,” she writes. “And most of the time during this past week, I stayed in pajamas all day. In fact, there was one day where I wore pajamas to bed, then wore them all day the next day, then back to bed, and then for half of the next day. Gross, I know. But if you’re reading this and if you are a parent yourself, then I’m sure you’ve been there too. Especially if you have more than one child.”
Caring for kids at home is a 24/7 job—one where you can barely take a bathroom break, let alone a quiet lunch break to get some air and refocus.
“Honestly, I find myself feeling angry at Kevin sometimes because he gets to go to work everyday and get a break,” she says. “I remember going to work after we had Molly and feeling like it was a vacation and not even work. And my ‘mom job’ at home is 10 times harder now that we have two kids, so I bet going to work will feel like a spa day once I go back (when I’m emotionally ready to leave Riley—but that’s a whole other blog post).”
To that we say: Yes, yes, a thousand times yes.
Fedotowsky-Manno says she’s opening up about her struggle because she wants to show her followers that even though she posts a lot of picture-perfect moments on her blog, she doesn’t have it all together.
“At the end of the day, I’m a normal parent like all of you and I have breakdowns and failures,” she writes. “I hope you guys don’t only look at my photos, but also watch my Instagram stories to get more of a sense of the real me. The mom that is just struggling to get by and sometimes failing miserably.”
After sharing a little fashion advice around an outfit she got to wear on one of the few occasions she left the house last week, she ends the post on a positive note.
“Even though this is been a challenging week, I know things will get better and there will be amazing weeks in my future and even harder weeks in my future,” Fedotowsky-Manno says. “I’m just taking it one day at a time and remembering to be grateful for these amazing children I have.”
Please note: The Bump and the materials and information it contains are not intended to, and do not constitute, medical or other health advice or diagnosis and should not be used as such. You should always consult with a qualified physician or health professional about your specific circumstances.
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