I'm not the perfect mom you meet at your child's preschool.
❌I don't proactively set up playdates for my kids
❌I don't make homemade playdough
❌I never arranged the food on my child's plate to look like a cute person or animal
❌I didn't do cute baby photos each month with a sign showing their age
Those are things I didn't do. And if you don't do them either, there's nothing wrong with that! Never, never let artificial standards make you feel like you're falling short. What I did do is that I taught my kids how to read the Bible, I rearranged my corporate career so that I could do preschool drop off and pick up. I eventually left my career so that I could be at every single game and activity that my child competed in. I made sure we had dinner together every single night no matter how rushed it may have felt. These were the things that were important to me.
As I've matured as a mom, I no longer feel guilty for what I don't do but grow more confident all the time in the things that I do prioritize in my parenting. Don't feel guilty saying no. I would much rather say no to society's standard of a perfect mom than have regret not doing what I knew was important for our family.
Happy Mother's Day to all of the amazing moms and caregivers out there who are giving it their all every day. It is an all consuming, exhausting, and challenging calling. But it is also the most precious title I will ever have and I still can't believe that these four precious blessings call me Mom!