Simple Words of Appreciation

It’s not the link to the article that caught my eye when this post showed up on my newsfeed. I had seen it before and I have been aware for most of my life that main brand shampoos, cosmetics, and such, contain chemicals that I don’t want anywhere near my family. In fact, I started this blog in hopes to educate others about things like this.

What struck me about this post was the comment that the husband of the poster made to his wife. “I am so grateful and admire all the hard work and time you put in researching all the products that are at our disposal for our family. Thank you so much for ensuring that our children are getting the healthiest, most natural products out there. You’re the best mom and one day Joseph and Emma will thank you for giving them the best opportunities in life at such a young age. I thank you now and will always be grateful for your unconditional love. Love you babe.”

Now, I don’t really know this couple, but here’s what I do know.

I know that…

it isn’t easy to have to research every ingredient of every product that you bring into your home in a society where people are surrounded by companies who are out to make money without much regard to the consequences of the side effects of ingredients used.

I know that …

raising natural kids takes a lot of work, and that there are many people who think that kids who are raised without a parent who cares much about the ingredients in the food they are eating and in the products used in the home, will grow up just as fine as those raised naturally. Thus, many people raising kids mainstream think us natural parents are a little cuckoo.

I know that…

in many cases, moms are the ones who sacrifice sleep to stay up and research, to wake to nurse so their children can have the best foundation possible, who have to constantly defend what they know about vaccines, circumcision, co-sleeping, GMOs, (whatever the non-mainstream topic) to their better halves who aren’t always aware about the two sides of all of these issues.

I know that…

having a supportive partner makes a huge difference in how the children view and believe in the importance of making healthy choices. For instance, if one parent makes a healthy meal and the other parent makes a face or a negative comment, children are much less likely to buy into it. Same goes for products used in the home. If one parent and the children are all using toxic free products while the other parent continues to use his/her mainstream toxic ones, the kids notice and question it.

I know that…

a supported wife, appreciated for her efforts in raising her children in an environment that promotes their best health and emotional well being, will flourish and exude happiness for which her children will benefit.

Some people will read this and think that I don’t get the other side of it, or that I think that most fathers or significant others aren’t appreciative. Some may claim that I am not considering how much work the father’s do. This is not about that. This is about how a few simple words of appreciation can have a far reach in the lives of that particular mother and those around her, especially when she is going against the grain and facing obstacles that most people are not, in order for her to do what she knows is best for her children.