They say it takes a village to raise a child. They aren't lying. If I had to list the doctors, specialists, advice givers, sitters, drivers, fixers, do-ers, tear driers, advice givers, listeners... We would be here all night. BUT it also takes a village to make a bad ass woman. It takes an AMAZING village to make a great woman a great mom.
There will never be a shortage of gratitude for those of you that fit into my village. I am better because of you. My daughter is better because of you. Those of you who remind me I am doing the right thing or slip me the extra smiles when I need them are just reminding me that opportunity for gratitude and happiness lie all over the place.
I was complaining to a friend a few week's back that I was the worst mom ever because I promised something and when it came time to book, they were all sold out. I actually cried over this. We had waited so patiently for this fun and amazing opportunity and then poof. Gone. She reminded me that mistakes happen and my version of failure isn't actually failure. It's me being hard on myself. It's me setting the bar so incredibly high that sometimes I can't even reach all my goals. It is me realizing that she is right and I just need to take a deep breath and realize that none of this was the end of the world. Laughter and joy were still planned and executed, just differently than the original plan was laid out.
Today I embrace the acronyms "FAIL", "END", and "NO" as a challenge to keep smiling, keep laughing and keep doing me. I embrace my flaws and failures, as much as my accomplishments. I embrace it all, including my village. We need each other more than ever to encourage and cheer each other on. I hope everyone finds just the right fit for their own village so they can be the best version of who they want to be always.
