Today is Mother's Day and I've been reflecting on how much I've enjoyed being a single divorced mother the past 9 years. Can it be challenging with the juggling of our schedules? Yes!
Am I ready to pull my hair out at times with the emotional upheaval of a teenage daughter? Yes!
Do I enjoy the fact that her current boyfriend lives 2 counties away and Face Time is how they mostly communicate? Yes!
Would I change it for the world? Absolutely Not!
I love it!
My job demands occasional international travel and I have no family nearby that can jump in to assist with my daughter when I'm gone. She has a lot of after-school activities, including school band, is active in our church, dance, dance and a lot more dance.
Friends are amazed at how effortlessly our life runs with everything we have going on. And trust me, we have A LOT going on; our lives are blessedly filled.
Let me share some of the lessons I've learned along the way that have kept us moving along like a well-oiled clock.
Stay in today. The days are counting down on how long my daughter will be under my roof. So I strive to focus on her when we are together. Whether that's teaching her life lessons or we are just plain having fun. When we spend time together she IS MY FOCUS.
I'm organized. Friends call me highly organized. I'm not anal about it; nor am I inflexible. But, I have learned to rely on the systems I've put in place to have my life, and my daughter's, run smoothly. This doesn't stop at home; I'm that way at work as well. It is a system I've built for myself over time and share with those who see the benefit of it working in my life.
Support network. I have lots of friends I rely on. A good friend jumps in to 'play mom' when I travel and I have a list of neighborhood kids that drive my daughter to dance when my work schedule doesn't allow. I work out car pool plans with parents of my daughter's friends. For me it truly does take a village to raise a child and I've learned to maximize it.
What does this have to do with Mother's Day you're wondering?
It allows me to enjoy, and even relish the precious time I share with my daughter. She worked bit by bit all week making a special Mother's Day gift for me because she understands about not leaving everything to the last minute (except cleaning her bedroom!).
Our organization ensured that all chores were done over the course of the week so we could spend today together doing things we love and not heading into the work week with unfinished business or homework.
Stay in Today. We had a fabulous time together today. For us, it doesn't matter what we did; what matters is that we were together enjoying life and each other's company. I had a wonderful Mother's Day.
http://www.steppingintojoy.com
About the Author
Debbi Dickinson coaches divorced women to move past their divorce and create a new life for themselves mixing spiritual strategy with time tested proven tools. Debbi invites you to take advantage a Free 5-Day Video Guide that outlines some of these tools. http://www.steppingintojoy.com/
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