This morning I was running late. “Late” has been the norm since we hit the final stretch of pre-conference ramp up.
“OK kids grab your backpacks and get yourself buckled into the car!” I sing-songed the way I imagined “good moms” do every day – pretending I wasn’t stressed at the thought I’d be pulling into school on two wheels once again.
I hopped to the garage door pulling a sneaker on with one hand and balancing my water, computer and conference postcards in the other, sunglasses gripped between my teeth, wondering if I could open the door with my nose to shave a few seconds off my exit.
As I opened the door the whiff of fresh spring air greeted me and I knew that could mean only one thing…. My kids headed out the garage door instead of getting into the van.
Grrrrrrrrr
I wanted to bark at both of them to get in the G*D* car but since they are only 5 & 7 I try to limit the cursing I do in front of them. They can find out how salty their mother is later on. Besides I had made a pledge that morning to be “the mother I want to be” – and 8:30 am seemed like too early an hour to break that pledge.
I don’t find I can be “the mom I’d like to be” on a daily basis but I try to do it on a consistent enough basis that my children have some fond memories of their childhood to share with the therapist.
(Definition of “the mom I’d like to be”: the mom who doesn’t yell, has endless patience and sees her children 100% of the time as the gifts they are.)
“Little M” I said smiling through gritted teeth. “Why didn’t you get in the car like I asked?”
“Oh mom! Look at the sky – it is such a beautiful color of blue!” he exclaimed with the wonder I often worry is disappearing with each moment he spends on his DS.
And that is when I remembered why I run my own business – because I can stop and look at the sky with my little boy whenever I like. I don’t have a boss and my deadlines are self-imposed…
And when my daughter tells me that she would really like me to be the secret reader in her class a second time this month I can say yes.
And, even though my stomach sometimes flips at the bigness of the Mom Gets A Life mission, having my own business lets me be the “kind of mother I want to be” even on the days I don’t believe I’m succeeding.
I may not always do it perfectly but today I stopped and watched the sky with my seven-year old son. So no matter what else happens today I am the mom I want to be.
How about you? What helps you be the kind of mother you want to be?
If running your own business can help you get to the kind of mother you want to be please think about joining us at The Mom Gets A Business Conference April 26 in NYC. We’ve got a whole host of cool successful women coming to share their secrets to wealth + momhood that works. We’d love for you to join us! Register today: www.momgetsabiz.com/register/.
Can’t join us in person? There is even a way to participate from home – just look at the bottom of the registration page!
Thanks for being here and reading my message. I want you to stay connected with me so that I can share all future communications with you.
Please enter your name and email below to join my community.
Success! Thank you for joining. You'll receive a confirmation in a while.