I’ve sent this to so many friends. It’s honest, beautifully composed and wise. Leaning into motherhood as a central, life-altering identity is essential to our understanding of both ourselves and the God who gave us this role and privilege. Thank you for writing well and giving us words for this.
Beautifully written! Children need to feel safe, secure, seen, and loved. They do not need everything in their lives to be Pinterest worthy. (I am grateful for those who put their creative ideas out there for me to use, though) I am well out of the toddler years and into the launching years, but at every stage I have simultaneously felt like I was failing as a mom and yet somehow killing it. I have come to realize that even though I couldn’t give my kids all the material things that their friends got (designer clothes, magazine homes, Disney trips and international travel), our home was a safe haven where they could mess up without condemnation, be loved unconditionally, and be encouraged even in failure. They are becoming well adjusted adults who love God and others, are kind, compassionate, and not self-centered. And, in the end, that is what we all want. I grew and changed along with them as they were growing, so I am excited to see who I am becoming as well.
I love this. I always love talking to moms in the launching years, especially when you tell me that your kids are kind and compassionate after so much hard work. Happy Mother’s Day!
I love this and am grateful for your honesty. (Dare I call it 'authenticity'?) I, too, am a mother to two young kids (7 & 9) and struggle with expressing emotions as an internal processor. I don't want to engage in pretend play, particularly enjoy hugging people, nor does it often occur to me to be encouraging or effusive in my comments. So this thought about how exhausting and demoralizing it is to feel as if I'm not doing this 'right' most of the time resonates.
And yet, God in His wisdom saw fit to give me with two kiddos who daily challenge my own vision of 'who' or 'what' I am. I find myself reaching out to cuddle and hug my incredibly affectionate 7-year-old son; he'll stop a couple a times a day to tell me he loves me and I can do nothing but respond in kind. And my 9 year old needs near daily reminders that God has made her beautiful and blessed her with gifts she is called to use to serve others and glorify Him.
So I'm reminding myself lately that I'm not the perfect mom or even close to it, but I'm the right mom for these two kids. God doesn't make mistakes and He knows what and who they needed - and maybe just as importantly, He knows I need them.
I’ve sent this to so many friends. It’s honest, beautifully composed and wise. Leaning into motherhood as a central, life-altering identity is essential to our understanding of both ourselves and the God who gave us this role and privilege. Thank you for writing well and giving us words for this.
Thanks so much for these kind words and for reading and sharing!
I really loved this Melissa.
Thank you!
Beautifully written! Children need to feel safe, secure, seen, and loved. They do not need everything in their lives to be Pinterest worthy. (I am grateful for those who put their creative ideas out there for me to use, though) I am well out of the toddler years and into the launching years, but at every stage I have simultaneously felt like I was failing as a mom and yet somehow killing it. I have come to realize that even though I couldn’t give my kids all the material things that their friends got (designer clothes, magazine homes, Disney trips and international travel), our home was a safe haven where they could mess up without condemnation, be loved unconditionally, and be encouraged even in failure. They are becoming well adjusted adults who love God and others, are kind, compassionate, and not self-centered. And, in the end, that is what we all want. I grew and changed along with them as they were growing, so I am excited to see who I am becoming as well.
I love this. I always love talking to moms in the launching years, especially when you tell me that your kids are kind and compassionate after so much hard work. Happy Mother’s Day!
I love this and am grateful for your honesty. (Dare I call it 'authenticity'?) I, too, am a mother to two young kids (7 & 9) and struggle with expressing emotions as an internal processor. I don't want to engage in pretend play, particularly enjoy hugging people, nor does it often occur to me to be encouraging or effusive in my comments. So this thought about how exhausting and demoralizing it is to feel as if I'm not doing this 'right' most of the time resonates.
And yet, God in His wisdom saw fit to give me with two kiddos who daily challenge my own vision of 'who' or 'what' I am. I find myself reaching out to cuddle and hug my incredibly affectionate 7-year-old son; he'll stop a couple a times a day to tell me he loves me and I can do nothing but respond in kind. And my 9 year old needs near daily reminders that God has made her beautiful and blessed her with gifts she is called to use to serve others and glorify Him.
So I'm reminding myself lately that I'm not the perfect mom or even close to it, but I'm the right mom for these two kids. God doesn't make mistakes and He knows what and who they needed - and maybe just as importantly, He knows I need them.
Yes, this is exactly it. My kids get the absolute best out of me because of who they are. We sound quite similar :) Happy Mother’s Day!