Just a Mom?

Recently, insecurity crept into my thoughts about my level of commitment to raising my kid.  It all started after watching a TV episode dealing with a mom trying not to tell stories about her baby.  She said she never wanted to become that woman that is only a mom. It ended in her ranting about her kid non-stop and everyone else getting annoyed. I started to notice how often I am that mom...

We spend the better part of our day's together, just the two of us. It's hard not to talk about it, since that IS my day.  I enjoy doing everything we do together. I post pictures of mostly her, I tell stories about her, I spend almost all of my time dedicated to making sure she's getting the best out of life.  The news I read is typically either parenting or psychology related. All in an effort to ensure I'm doing the absolute best job I can raising our daughter. I eat, breath and sleep my kid. Was I just a mom? Is that all that there is to me any more? Does it drive people crazy?!

This self doubt was making me a little self conscious. While it was eating me up inside, I started thinking about what it was I was missing out on... Honestly, I didn't feel like I was... I am learning about the world all over again, from a completely different angle.  Having a hand in teaching someone how to navigate life seems like such an incredible opportunity for study. And, really, I don't care if anyone else thinks of me as just a mom.  I know better.

We never miss an opportunity to do something new together, whether we go hiking, on an adventure, to a park, or the beach.  All things that make me who I am, I choose to share them with my family.  The time we spend together makes our lives better. I ache when we're all apart.

I don't knock any mom that doesn't get to spend as much time with their families.  I am more often jealous of how they spend their time, and I'm sure they are jealous of how I spend mine. Everyone becomes insecure in their roles in life from time to time.  For a brief moment I forgot that I chose this life, the most important thing is that it makes me happy. It doesn't matter to me if other people think, I've found myself here for a reason.