Momscopes: The Virgo Mom

August 23-September 22

Mommy Magic: Your Strengths & Gifts

Organization

You’re a walking database of parenting information—the Google of motherhood—and your kids’ lives are well-planned as a result. Structure is what makes children feel safest, so your ability to provide it can help your kids grow up to feel confident and empowered in the world. They’ll also be pretty practical as a result of your guidance! You puree food and freeze it in ice cube trays, scour the mommy message boards for gently-used educational toys, and keep an Excel spreadsheet rating the best strollers. Not a moment of your pregnancy is wasted, either: you’ve decorated the nursery and applied for the best local preschool by your second trimester. You’re so thrifty, you even re-gift (who needs all those onesies, anyhow?). You’re the patron saint of new mamas, too, offering a wealth of helpful advice for every age and stage. Virgos love details and trivia, so you find the whole process of child development fascinating—from poop variations (Virgo rules digestion) to sleep training—and you know just about every fact and figure on it all. You’d be wise to set up a mommy blog and monetize it, stat!

Healthy Habits

Hello, non-toxic mommy. Virgo is an earth sign that rules the zodiac’s sixth house of health and fitness. You want to ensure that your kids have the best possible nutrition, healthy habits and pediatric care. Immunizations? Your children are either on the dot with their shots, or you’ve enrolled them in alternative education (or moved to a commune) so they can avoid the needle. Nutrition is another big thing for you. You’re the mom who’s orchestrated the sugar and cupcake ban at your kid’s elementary school—and you don’t care if they hate you for it, either. At least they won’t have cavities. As long as you don’t go to extremes, your kids will probably thank you for teaching them healthy habits—at least, once they’re too old to trick-or-treat. If you’re the outdoorsy or active type, you’ll enjoy sharing hikes, bike rides and even planting a vegetable garden with the kids. Virgos are usually pretty talented in the kitchen, too, so make meal preparation a fun family activity. Teach the kids to make signature salads or healthy dishes with quinoa, multigrain pasta, or colorful veggies (the “rainbow plate”).

Mama Mia! Your Challenges & Issues

Anal Retentiveness

Organization is one thing, but as the saying goes, “man plans; God laughs.” You can get all too hung up on your carefully orchestrated schedules and plans, turning order into chaos with your crazy-making. Parenting is an exercise in being out of control, and this can be a challenge for you. Yet, it will be necessary to learn flexibility, especially if you have a more free-spirited child (like a Gemini, Sag or Aquarius) who doesn’t like structure. Face it, Virgo, you’re hardwired to sweat the small stuff. As a mom, you need to deprogram yourself from some of those perfectionist tendencies, which stem from worry and fear. Remind yourself that all is well. If your kids’ clothes aren’t hand-dyed with teas and berries, made from organic cotton and Fair Trade certified, well…things will probably work out just the same. Should your child ingest a crayon, an Oscar Meyer hot dog or a snack that lists hydrogenated palm kernel oil as a main ingredient…their immune and digestive systems can handle the blow. What’s most important is that you teach your kid not to overreact. The world doesn’t need another neurotic Woody Allen! Go easy on the helicopter parenting and hovercrafting. Tuck away that hand sanitizer now. You can’t stop your kid from getting bumps and boo-boos, but you can be there to kiss them and make it all better.

Cattiness

Oh my God, can you BELIEVE she lets her kid eat that? Why isn’t she disciplining her child and teaching her not to bite? You can be a snarky, sideline-sniping Sancti-Mommy, a bigger playground terror than the kid who throws snowballs or pushes other children off the swings. Virgo is an analytical sign with perfectionist tendencies and super-high standards—both for yourself and other people. While it’s great that you have such sound values, it’s not so nice when get caught up on your judgmental, “mama knows best” trip. Before you deliver a scathing critique, look within: are you secretly being hard on yourself? Maybe you’re expecting yourself to do things “right”—when, in reality, there’s not such thing. When the urge to shred another mother strikes, take a moment to be nice to yourself. Say a little mantra or affirmation, treat yourself to a special cup of tea, take a deep breath. Maybe you can find a way to offer some constructive advice to a fellow mom in need. But if you can’t say anything nice, remember the Golden Rule.

Famous Virgo Mamas: Salma Hayek, Faith Hill, Jennifer Hudson, Ricki Lake, Shania Twain, Beyonce, Michelle Williams, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Nicole Richie, Michelle Duggar, Amy Poehler, Caroline Manzo

Next up: Children’s Horoscopes—What’s Your Child’s Sign? >