Ah, motherhood. If you are a Mom, chances are you have seen and heard it all! From dirty diapers to throw-up, laugh-out-loud author Sam Deane Mavis,who holds nothing back in her brutally honest new book Motherland of Sam: We Are All Born A**holes.
The Motherland of Sam blog founder takes a unique approach to telling her story as an unconventional mother of 3, all of which are under 5 years of age, as a parent trying to find her way and submitting to the beautiful chaos that is her life.
With blog titles such as “Parenting Multiple Toddlers: Someone is Always Crying,” “Do You Hear The Poop Mom” and “Sibling Love: I F**king Love Him Mom” Sam’s faithful fans and fellow parents are always in for a good laugh and wild ride. Her book uses the same sharp and witty sense of humor to divulge valuable life lessons that readers will absolutely fall in love with and undeniably relate to.
Having moved to Southern California in her high school years, the eccentric Buffalo native always knew she was a shining star. With the arts as her passion, she was a triple threat; highly skilled acting, singing and dancing in local theatre and school shows. Deciding to pursue her talents further, Deane Mavis attended New York University’s prestigious Tisch School of the Arts to become an actress. She quickly realized that a more suitable and enjoyable creative outlet was in writing and she set her sights on screenplays. She made the move from New York to LA and formed a close relationship with writer/director/producer Tony Bui, best known for his successful indie film THE GREEN DRAGON, which starred Patrick Swayze and Forest Whitaker. Deane
Deane Mavis met and married her husband in 2011 and quickly had their 3 beautiful children; Ferris, Halen and Hugo. After the birth of her youngest in 2014, she found herself fully consumed by her children and made the decision to return to writing as an expression to everything happening in her life. But instead of trying to write a new screenplay or sitcom she decided to write about something that hit close to home, literally, hence the creation of Motherland of Sam.
In her sparingly free time Sam loves to be active going on runs and doing yoga at least once a week. She also hopes to get her children involved in charity work as they get older, with the hope that each will start his or her own organization helping a cause that they feel a connection to.
I loved, loved, loved Sam’s book! I read the entire book in under four hours, it was THAT entertaining. Although my three oldest children are mostly grown (whew, I don’t know how I survived that.) I still have a nine-year old who is driving me insane most of the time. (He has since birth.)
I really feel like Sam and I have some parenting experiences in common. My life raising kids has always been somewhat of a circus, and I can really feel alone when I compare myself as a mom to my siblings and friends who seem to ‘have their crap together.’
It is wonderful to know that I am not the only ‘non-cookie cutter’ Mom who does not have ‘perfect’ kids. (I really do think my son, Braxton is the devil sometimes. Is that horrible to say? Gotta love him.) Thankfully, I have a sense of humor like Sam does that helps me to cope with the many ‘not so pleasant’ parenting moments that I deal with daily. (Like the fact that my nine year-old still sleeps in our bed…………….aaauuuugggghhhh.)
Below is an exclusive Q&A with author Sam Deane Mavis:
How did you get into writing your blog?
It might sound strange to say, but I was sort of “forced” into writing my blog. I never thought I’d be brave enough to actually write true stories about my personal experiences as a mother raising my kids. I had been a writer for a long time in TV & Film and had always written stories about other people or characters I had created, but after having three kids in three years I no longer had the luxury of time to sit for hours crafting screenplays. Family came first and my writing time was reduced down to funny, honest and embarrassing blurbs I would write on Facebook. To my surprise people really loved these vulnerable truths I would tell on Facebook and they went out of their way to encourage me to start a blog. I pushed off the blog idea for a couple years, still being too scared to really open up to the world. Finally enough people were bugging me and some close friends actually yelled at me, that I decided okay fine I’ll roll the dice and see what happens.
What is the premise behind your blog, what inspired you to write it?
The premise behind my blog was to simply write true stories and creative tales about my life as a mother in the midst of raising three kids, three and under. As a creative choice I chose to highlight each blog with a photograph I took of my kids during the day with my iPhone camera. The inspiration for the blog is driven by the truth that there is so much emotion, beauty, reflection, doubt, fear, chaos and joy in becoming a parent and raising kids that I couldn’t help but to express my personal internal world of being a mom.
Tell us about your kids’ personalities, how old are they and what are their names?
My oldest is a boy, his name is Ferris and he’s four years old. He’s somewhat neurotic, extremely picky, but wildly creative. He’s got a booming personality and everyone adores him, the girls, boys, moms and dads. He’s just got that special spark that makes him shine when he talks. My middle is a girl, her name is Halen and she just turned three years old. Halen is a fiercely independent spirit whom I’m certain could survive out in the wilderness on her own as well as teach herself how to talk to bears. People often think she’s serious, but she’s the biggest trickster and comedian of the three kids, it just takes her awhile to warm up to anyone outside of the family. My youngest is a boy and his name is Hugo, he’s about to turn two years old. Hugo is a lover, a fighter and completely fearless. He’s all stud, I’m sure he’ll break a lot of hearts and will most likely propose to his future wife while skydiving.
How has having kids changed your married?
Well, there are no more candles and sexy music to get us in the mood at night. My husband is amazing, he’s completely committed to the family and very hands with the kids, but any marriage with kids turns two lovers into partners and co-presidents of a company called “The Family.” We have to constantly remind ourselves to stop bossing each other around, laugh more and schedule dates so we can get away, enjoy each other and stop thinking about the kids.
Does your husband take over at night parenting and give you a break?
With three kids as young as ours, both mom and dad are always parenting at night and there is no break. So yes, he helps always, but that doesn’t mean I get a break.
How do you stay fit, are there days you just don’t feel beautiful?
I keep a regular Monday, Wednesday, Friday morning workout schedule which consists of 30-minutes of cardio and 30-minutes of weights or a Yoga class. In general, I try hard to never miss my workouts unless I am sick. Keeping consistent with being in tune with my physical body helps me feel connected to my inner beauty, which really is the most important aspect of feeling beautiful. With that being said, I’ve had the “preschool cold” for a good 4 weeks and I’ve been off my workout regime for the last month, which has definitely affected my mood.
What has been the biggest surprise when parenting your kids?
I think the biggest surprise I’ve discovered while parenting my kids is how happy I’ve become since I’ve had them. Sure I’m busy all the time, lack sleep, privacy, the ability to be spontaneous and jet off on a romantic trip with my husband and I find myself overwhelmed, a lot, but I’m actually very happy. I love being challenged by the duties of raising kids, meeting new parents and sharing our stories of raising our kids together. It’s a beautiful life and I’m much more open to living life loud with laughter since I decided to have kids.
Do you understand your own parents more since having kids?
Absolutely, I realize that my parents are holy saints for giving me the very best childhood a kid could imagine, because as I know now, this parenting is really hard work. My parents believed in education, in travel, in sports, theater and welcoming all friends into our house. They never complained and they loved being parents, they taught me that family is everything and I should not take it for granted.
Please let our readers know where they can find you.
The best way to find me is on Facebook at Motherland of Sam or on WordPress, a blog hosting site at 365 Days In The Motherland of Sam.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book to review. All opinions are my own.
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