One Year
One year ago, this little collaborative endeavor became a reality. I started this blog after years of talking about it, and I brought on some ladies to contribute who I greatly admire. I wanted it to be a group effort, knowing that as moms, we all have times when we are overwhelmed with life. So, we all give our thoughts on various topics when we have the time to sit down and share.
These ladies are all amazing moms, friends, accomplished business owners and career superstars. We each have different perspectives to share. We have different life experiences and different goals. And none of us are perfect. We just have ideas and ways that we live and raise our kids. But we try to live and lead by the example of just being good humans.
One year ago, my biggest concern every day or week was juggling life – trying to give my kids as much “normal” as possible while keeping up with all the things. I still do this! We all do.
One year ago, we traveled regularly across our state and across the country – or the world. I have now been home pretty solidly since the last week in February (almost 4 months?!?), which is the longest I’ve ever stayed home since we bought our house 15 years ago. And while I’ve gone a little stir crazy (as have my kids), it has been amazing. We have appreciated the day to day of life a little bit more. We still like (and love) each other, we love our house, and we love our town.
My kids have been able to just be home and roll into summer fun. Do we miss the beach? Absolutely! Do we miss the adventure of travel? Yes! But we’ve also found the fun of summer at home, riding bikes around the block (for the little) or the neighborhood (for the middle), sprinklers and water fights, fishing, and rainy movie nights at home.
One year ago, I never imagined we would have a global pandemic in 2020. How many people would have? Hindsight and all that.
One year ago, we as a country had issues and problems to face, together. Today, we still have issues and problems. And we all need to work together to solve them.
I don’t have all the answers. I am not an expert. I am just a person. A mom. A wife. A small business owner and friend.
I have struggled with what to say this week, as I know many of you have. What I know? We all have love to give. To our kids, to our friends, and to everyone around us.
So, my message this week is love.
My wild roses are blooming, and pink roses symbolize gratitude, grace and love. Take a moment this morning for gratitude. Be thankful for what you have, and what you have to give. Give grace. And love one another.
Social media has been such a mixed blessing for us all. We reconnect with old friends, share the highlights of our lives, and share our various feelings. And it is easy to use the screen as a shield – to say things that we would never say to each other in person. As you go about your online life, share the love. Remember that we are all humans, and none of us are perfect.
One year ago, I never would have predicted that 3 months of posts would cover topics and life during a pandemic.
Life is an adventure. It is a journey. And life takes detours we never expect – whether it’s the road less traveled or forging a new path. Along the road of life, share love, grace and be thankful. Take on new adventures!
Life is also hard. Parenting, adulting, doing all the things. All hard. And so rewarding.
Be thankful for the Teachable Moments of life – those we take advantage of for our kids, and those moments when they teach us. Kids tell it like it is, and they take our love and share it exponentially. Teach love, and our kids will spread it everywhere.
While you do life, give all the love you can. Just be good humans. We all need it.