Nicole Richie Can Balance It All and So Can You

Celebrity Momster Nicole Richie is the cover girl for the March 2012 California Style magazine.

Celeb Baby Laundry reports that she talks about balancing motherhood and career in the issue.

 “I can’t sit here and say that it’s easy all day long. I’m just figuring out how to make it work. But I really don’t have anything to complain about. I have a very supportive family and husband [Joel Madden] and that makes it so much easier. My parents live here. They’re each 10 minutes away from me, and they’re very eager to come over even when I don’t want them to.”

I think that just about sums it all up—trying to figure it out as we go along. I suppose I have this fear that I actually am making it work really well right now and that one day I’ll wake up and realize how well I managed it all and be like—why didn’t I recognize that and enjoy it all more?

I think I waste too much time worrying about not doing everything as best as possible, even as I’m probably doing pretty well at the balance.

Maybe we need to give ourselves more credit as mothers for doing such a good job of balancing it all!

Madonna is Just Like You and Me (Well, Almost...)

Madonna is the latest Celebrity Momster to join the it’s-so-hard-to-be-a-mom conversation.

I read readers’ comments with great interest and while there were a few voices of wisdom pointing out that Madonna has as much a right as “regular” moms to voice her difficulties, the majority of opinions were—how dare she go there?!

According to Celebrity Baby Scoop, Madonna told The Sun, "I'm not going to lie - it's hard work having four kids and doing all the work I do. Everybody has something to say about the way I live my life. At the end of the day I'm doing my best. If people don't like it, then that's really their problem. Sometimes I cope with it very well, sometimes it's a struggle. It's a challenge juggling everything - multi-tasking is my middle name."

Readers’ anger came from Madonna saying it’s hard raising four kids when she can hire all the help she needs and wants. They also point out that she can always make the choice to scale back on her work load. While all of this is true, I think we need to also notice that she is facing the same struggle all moms face.

How much work do we pursue as opposed to how much actual in-the-trenches child-rearing do we tackle? It’s a very real question for many moms—even those who don’t have the luxury of making the choice of working or not. Regardless of our financial situations, we are all struggling to balance the demands of work and motherhood.

And we need to take into account that Madonna also has a whole host of other concerns that us “regular” moms don’t. And I don’t think Madonna sounds like she’s complaining at all about her situation; she’s simply being honest.

It’s not to say that one situation—Celebrity Momster or regular mom— is better or worse than the other. It’s just to say that a lot of mothers have the same struggle at heart. How do I balance it all? How do I satisfy my greatest needs and desires as a person separate from being a mother?

Gwen Stefani Talks the Nightmare of Balancing Career and Kids

When I was young, my mom had a coffee mug with a cartoon super mother flying through the sky multi-tasking as she went. I remember the poor disheveled carton figure looked like she’d been side-swiped by a low-flying airplane.

I now understand how true that silly mug was. As I think most moms do. The whole balancing thing is kind of hard when there are literally not enough hours in the day to complete everything and make everyone happy.

Celebrity Baby Scoop talks with a Celebrity Momster sharing her take on balancing career and children.

"I've never been able to balance being a mum and my singing career - it's a nightmare," Gwen, who has kids Kingston, 5, and Zuma, 3, with her husband Gavin Rossdale, tells Closer magazine. "I love my boys, so if there's a decision to make, they come first."

For a lot of moms, work demands cannot be put off until tomorrow to just spend time with the kids.

The goal for me is to balance all aspects of life as well as I can and make sure my kids know that it’s not that I don’t want to spend time with them; I just sometimes can’t! (Oh, and I do also love most of my work, except for my inbox filled with Final Projects waiting to be graded…)

This is probably the ideal for a lot of families. But, of course, while Gwen Stefani can afford to be choosy about turning down work obligations, how do regular mothers handle that challenge?

Victoria Beckham Struggles with Motherhood/Career Balance, Too

Celeb Baby Laundry reports on people’s reactions to Victoria Beckham’s appearance at the debut of her collection at Harvey Nichols during London Fashion week. Apparently, some onlookers were disappointed that Beckham did not look as polished as usual.

Maybe it’s just me, but I think she looks better than her usual perfectly polished photos. She still looks well put-together, just with a touch of normalcy.

Beckham told the Daily Mirror: “Look, if people want to say I’m miserable then so be it. I’m really not. I have a lot on my plate. I’m not going to lie about it, I’m tired. I’m really tired but I’m also very happy with my life.”

 “I’m not getting much sleep at all. Harper’s not sleeping that great, and I’ve been taking Skype business calls throughout the night, too, because of the collections. I’m up with the baby as all mums are, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. There’s not a team of people doing it for me.”

 “I’m basically just like any woman who’s working and has lots of children—it’s tough.”

I don’t know about you, but I enjoy hearing about a Celebrity Momster sharing how her life is not so different than other moms. Yes, her life may be filled with more glamour, but she’s still just a human being trying to balance the demands of motherhood and career.

The Mommy/Career Choice

Ah! I found words of wisdom on Celebrity Baby Scoop from Denise Richards who is mom to three girls.

"You have to take the pressure off yourself. If you try to make everything perfectly balanced, that can create guilt. When I'm working, things give at home and when I'm at home, things give at work," Denise tells Women's Wear Daily.

This is the message I know that I need to learn well. I often get distracted and guilty feeling when I’m trying to work and then when I’m spending time with the kids I’m thinking of all the work I need to do.

We all need to allow ourselves to do what feels right for us when it comes to the mommy/career choice.

And for those moms who want to have it all, we need to remind ourselves we don’t need to have it all at the same moment!

Of course, it would also be nice to be able to just jet off to a tropical locale whenever we want to have some family down time like Denise Richards…

Rock It, Katherine Heigl!

Thanks Perezitos for showing me how like Katherine Heigl I am!

Heigl struggled with the same conflict that many mothers have—to work or not to work?

She tried to leave Hollywood but found herself unhappy, so she did what felt right, tried to find a way to balance motherhood and career.

"I asked myself what was wrong with me. How can I want to leave my child to go back to work? The simple truth is that I love my daughter passionately and as most mothers do, but she cannot fulfill everything in me. I needed to put this gift I've been given to perform back to use.

"Now, when I take a job, I look my daughter in the eye… and try to explain to her that Mommy has to go to work. And when she looks back at me and says, 'But why?', I tell her the truth: that work makes me a better person, a better woman, a better mother. Then I pray to God that she will understand one day and that my example will encourage her to find and follow her bliss as well."

Bravo to Heigl for being willing to discuss what some mothers might think is selfish. If mothers aren’t staying connected in some way to who they really are, how can they be a full person for their children?