Ok, so for the past two weeks I have been thinking a lot about my "job" as a mother, and my areas of expertise. When I was a working professional, I loved having the confidence and skills to do my job and do it well. Yes, confidence. Then, I decided to stay home... and that feeling went away!!! Now, I know I am a good mom, and I love my kiddos...so this is not a ploy to get you to tell me how great I am.. But it is how I feel. I have been feeling that in my life these days, I am not good at anything. I struggle with how to parent.. knowing that the ways we respond to our children shape who they become. Is this the right way to respond to a tantrum? Should I feed her sugar cereal? What is too much tv? You know, all the decisions we make that seem simple, but truly do impact who they are and who they become. There are days when I see huge signs of success and I get back that oh, so longed for feeling of confidence... and then the next day it is a melt down at church (or anywhere) and I am back to not knowing what to do. I also have my outside activities... my extra curriculars if you will. But even these are areas I want to grow in, as I know there is so much room for improvement. I want to take a photography class, so i can capture all these moments with my family so much better... I want to take a cake decorating class, so I can make fun things with and for my girls as they have their birthdays and celebrations.... I want to figure out this Photoshop elements, so I can make graphics and edit photos (they need editing, as I said, because I do not fully know how to use my camera..) I want to attend scrapbooking workshops, to learn the newest gadgets and actually get time to scrapbook... Gosh, that is a lot of wants. All of it stems from me wanting to get better at these things...
Then the Olympics began, and I am mesmerized by these athletes who accomplish such great things in their life, in their areas of expertise. They soar to new heights (some literally), they reach goals only dreamed of by so many.... Clearly they are amazing... and are confident in their success at their sport. Simply put, they are the greatest.
So, today I did something I never do.. I sat down and read the local paper and there was this article written by a mom who put into words (much better than I did, by the way) exactly my thoughts.... AHHHH! Yes.... I found myself saying this while reading her words.... She was in my head, knew my thoughts... Thank you for putting into words, what I was thinking....and for making me realize, I am still successful, and that my talents still exist and have actually multiplied. I just need to stop looking at what I don't do anymore, and celebrating what I do get to do!! And, I need to celebrate that I have earned my own gold medal, wear it proudly and pass on to other moms who I see struggling.. We all have such similar experiences, and a little support and passing of the love (or medals, as the article suggests) goes a long way!
Check out the article.... see if you relate!!!
http://www.newsregister.com/article/43502-baby+board+take+pride+039mama039+medalsand, you can join the facebook group: search Pass the medal!! :) or link from my page!!
See, now those of you who were saying they didn't like brussel sprouts are thinking.. "but I LOVE bacon". I am not a huge lover of bacon, but I know many folks are (especially men.. why is that??).. so, I cook up 2-3 pieces of bacon, then use the drippings to add more flavor when I cook up the brussel sprouts. I add about 1/4 chopped onion and saute on high for about 5 mins... Then I add the bacon back to the pan (crumbled, of course), add about 4 table spoons of chicken broth (just enough to add some liquid), then I cover and steam for a few more minutes.
