Day 1 - Mother

A few friends and I are working on a 30-day challenge of reclaiming ourselves.  Too often we get labeled by others or we label ourselves and we think that's all there is to us.  This is a proclamation of who we truly are and we'll be blogging about it for 30 days here in September.

If you want to know more about it - go here:  I AM 30 day challenge and feel free to join us in reclaiming yourself.

So for day 1 I have chosen the label "mother".  Why you ask?  Because it's something I've always dreamed of being.  I have always wanted children and lots of them, but I didn't expect them to come as late as they did.

Mother as a label to me is someone who is loving, caring, teaches children, gives up their dream for their kids, cooks, cleans, June Cleaver anyone?

Well, I so had it wrong.  I am a mother - gave birth to 4 children, 3 which are living.  I try to teach my kids the things I want them to learn - which is to be a good person.  To do that, I have to give up trying to be June Cleaver - because I will never be perfect.  Mother's make mistakes along the way.  There is no guide book to how to do things.  I know I see people that seem to have it all together and do lots of things around the house and crafty things -- that is so not me. 

I love my children.  I show them love.  I show them how to be a better person by example.  By not giving up my dream - but living it.  I show them how to be better people by teaching them how to clean up after themselves and when they're older, going to show them how to manage money and cook and do laundry.  I want them to be functioning members of society.

But I am human as well and get sick and don't have the time to do everything I think a mother should do.

So I'm disregarding June Cleaver and the "perfect" image of a mother.  But claiming LOVE and TEACHING as part of who I am.