THIS MOM NEVER LOOKED BETTER

Babymama, an online store and community of breastfeeding moms, got me thinking. If I were to compare my pre- and post-motherhood self, where do I look better?

This question is a no-brainer for me. I have always believed that I am like wine. I get better with age. (Ok, I actually laughed out loud after typing that.)

My problem is I have to present proof, a picture of myself before I became a mom. I had a hard time looking for pre-motherhood pictures because most of them are gone. Gone with the flood. Except for my wedding pictures, the ones that are left are those hanging on my parents' wall.

But then I thought, if I were to do a comparison, I might as well bring out the big guns. It would not be fair if I were to post my fairly recent picture side by side one where I was sporting some funny-looking clothes and outlandish hairstyle. Instead, I should use a picture taken at a time when I was my most beautiful self--the day I became a bride.

And this is what I came up with.

(My editing was bad. Had to crop the "before" pic for better comparison.)

Admittedly, I am a few pounds heavier. I now have grey hair. Taut and flawless skin is a thing of the past. But what are these compared to what I have gained. My days and nights are filled with children's laughter (of course, there are the occasional cries.) I open my bag and I get to see incomparable art works saying that I am the best mom in the whole wide world. I go home and I receive lots and lots of hugs and kisses.

So when my 7-year old daughter told me that I may be a little fat but I am still beautiful, I believed her. I believed her with all my heart.

And this is why I say that nine years and three kids later, this mom never looked better.

* This is an entry to Babymama Mother Day's Raffle. Babymama is an online store where I purchased my Unimom Forte double electric breastpump, the pump that made exclusive breastfeeding (no cow's milk) possible for this not-at-home-from-6 am-to-8 pm working mom of a 7 1/2-month old baby boy.