Learning to cut myself a little slack

So when I ventured into this rollercoaster called motherhood, I vowed that I'd be THAT mom, or wouldn't be that mom...I'd be the mom that cloth diapered, made her own baby food.  My kid will never throw tantrums or be spoiled, will eat wholesome home cooked meals every day...blahblahblah.  Well, I've managed to do some of that, but, I have noticed that I should cut myself a little slack sometimes.  Yes I'm a single mom, yes I do everything alone, yes I'm beyond exhausted most days and it's a constant struggle just to keep my head above water.  And am I hard on myself when I fall short of my own expectations? You bet.  Now why is that?  Why, when I'm my biggest ally do I kick myself when I'm down? So what if Mak doesn't get all 5 food groups at every meal?  I gave her a chicken nugget today...okay two...for lunch...with no vegetables...it won't kill her.  It's easy for me to blame others for why I'm the way I am.  Blame the parents, it's easy.  The heart of the problem lies in me.  What's with the constant need to be a superhero?  I think if I learned to cut myself a little slack I'd be a much stronger person and my mental health would be, well...better.  Easier said then done for a perfectionist. *sigh* At the end of the day nothing else matters except that Mak is happy and that I was the best mom I could be today.  Ten years from now she won't care if the house was clean or organized, the dishes were washed, she ate a balanced meal or that her clothes were stained.  All that will matter is that I was a good mom, that I played with her, read her stories, made her giggle.  Those moments of joy mean everything to me.  I need to learn to just live in the moment and to hell with everything else.  To let go of the meaningless drama, the constant need to over-achieve and the inner battle with myself to make sure everyone around me is happy.  All that matters is me and my little girl.  Plus if someone has a problem with my messy house, well they are more than welcome to come clean it for me while I play with my little girl ;)