Letter To My Boys

Recently I overheard a conversation between parents where one asked the other, "What do you want for your children?" and the other responded "I just want them to be happy."  It made me wonder, what do I want for my children?  Do I just want you to be happy?  Not really.  Happiness isn't reliable.  It's not some reachable destination.  It's ever-changing and often fleeting.  I'd say, at the very least, I want you to be happy.  Do I want you to find joy in your everyday life? Of course, yes.  But I want your lives to reflect the greatness that I know is within you, and greatness is born from moments that aren't so happy.  Greatness is born from overcoming frustration.  Greatness is born from overcoming fear, restlessness, anger or hurt.  It comes with tears and worry and sleepless nights.  It comes with ridicule and competition.  It requires hard lines that can't be crossed, steadfast faith that refuses to be broken, and courage to do what's not always easiest.  It requires balls of steel in moments of weakness...to either walk away, or to face the consequences of giving in.  It almost always includes making mistakes.  Moments that make you cringe.  And that's okay.  Be thankful for the lesson, ask for forgiveness, and move on.  As much as I want to shield you from all of those awful things, I know that growth or change isn't possible without them.  I also know that surviving those awful things requires knowing the One who put the greatness inside you, and His son who made your knowing Him possible. 

What do I want for you?  I want you to find your own greatness in life over and over again.  It's part of who you are and the legacy you leave.  It lives with you and beyond you. 

Keeping The Peace

I'm not gonna lie, there was a time when my temper could have been described as "backwoods."  One wrong look and I'd ask what exactly it is that you are staring at and if you'd like to take a picture.  I vaguely remember being the cause of an afternoon run to the E.R. because my brother needed stitches.  But honestly, be it age or be it experience, I've learned to laugh things off.  I rarely take myself seriously, much less the words of others.  But it seems that lately, my sense of humor is being tested. 
Do you ever have a day when you wish you had a free pass to say or do whatever you wanted?  It's that kind of week for me.  What I'd really like to say to said person is "how about you back up ten feet before speaking with me so that I'm not tempted to break your face with my elbow." or "what if you take those awful words back, and instead tell me 3 things that you love about me so that we can all recognize how freakin fabulous I am." or "yeah, nice to see you too, a-hole." or "don't mind me.  I'm just a human with a soul" or "don't worry about it.  I'll be the adult here since you obviously weren't going to take that route."
What stops me every time is the notion that most people, including me, aren't always aware of their tone, timing, or straight up lack of common decency.  I give most people the benefit of the doubt...sometimes to a fault.  And at the end of the day, I'll take the blow because honestly, I know I can handle it.  Probably better than most.  I know I'm an amazing mom, a thoughtful daughter, a supportive sister, a beautiful wife, a loyal friend, and overall an enjoyable person to be around.  So suckas can't get me down...and they definitely won't cause me to tarnish my Educated Citizen status.  Because reacting would give them what they want, and I'm not about to give them the satisfaction. 

Also, I'd hate for my children to have to speak to me from the other side of a prison cell.    

Mommy Confessions: My Son May Be a Genius. He May Also Be a Nudist

I will never claim to be a perfect mom.  And let's be real, some days I wouldn't even say I'm a great mom.  I do what I can a day at a time, and it's a bonus if at the end of any of those days we end up with one moment worthy of my Mommy Highlight Reel. 

Oh, don't pretend you don't have a highlight reel. 

Mine comes in the form of pictures on my phone.  "stay RIGHT there, kid!  I need a picture to document how awesome we were in this moment." {Because, after all, if there's not a picture...did it really happen?}  This way, when I scroll through, I see all the fantastic mommy moments I had, and I can forget about all the horrendously unattractive housewife outtakes that happened in between. 

If you don't have a highlight reel already, GET ONE.

Last week, I added a few more pictures to my highlight reel.  I may not be great at every aspect of being a mom, but teaching, that I can do.  I was made to do it.  My kid knows his alphabet, his numbers, he can count forwards and backwards, he knows time, his address, and how to spell his name. 

He's going to be President one day...

or maybe just a really intelligent hardworking individual who does great things in a normal-living kind of way. 

Either way, he needs a challenge, so I decided to make a trip to our local parent-teacher store to pick up some activity books.

Yeah, that's right. My 2.5 year old is working on a PreK-1st grade level. folks.

I've set "school time" during Charlie's morning nap, and right now we are working towards writing letters by tracing lines and such.

But I can't be great at everything...which is why he's completely naked in this picture {cropped out for your viewing comfort}.  Great at teaching. Not so great at keeping my child clothed.  Sometimes, all times, it's just easier to keep the kid naked.

Do what you can, right?