Intentionality

It hits me every once in a while just how fast life is going & how I can’t do anything to slow it down. That would be a great super power, don’t ya think?! Oh what so many moms would do to rewind and live life with their (now big ones) little ones again. I bet they’d do things a little differently. I bet they’d love harder and forget the petty things that seemed so big in the moment. I bet they’d focus on spending more quality time with their kids than quality time with their floors. I bet they’d intentionally slow down their days and not get caught up in the “busyness” of life, because that busyness ultimately led them to where they are now- with grown kids wondering how on earth they got so big and where on earth the time went. Sure, time would have eventually caught up with them and they’d still wonder how it flew by so quickly- but I bet they’d have a different security and confidence in who they were as a mom, how they raised their kids, and ultimately who their kids are. Those regrets or “I wish” moments maybe wouldn’t be there.

These things have been on my mind so much lately. I don’t want to be that mom I just talked about- I want to look back someday and be able to say that I raised my kids as best as I knew how (don’t we all though?!!). I believe one of the key successes to living this out is intentionality. We need to be intentional about the decisions we are making every day as moms. Intentional about being patient, intentional about setting our phones down, intentional about speaking positivity into their lives, intentional about spending one-on-one time with them . It’s reminding ourselves about being intentional every.single.day.

I’m also realizing that in order to be intentional, I need to slow down. My mind is going waaaaayyy too fast every second of the day to be able to stop, reflect, and be intentional about how I am living out my day. And if you know me at all, slowing down is not very realistic in my world! On that note-  slowing down does not seem realistic for any mother! However, it’s prioritizing what is really important in our lives and making an effort to focus on these things rather than those other “important” things. It’s being able to say “no”. It’s being okay with not checking off every single item on the to-do list… because if we’re going to be real, when is the to-do list ever checked off? Seriously!! As soon as you’ve checked off that last item, another list started! The never-ending to-do list of life will always be there and this is something I’m slowly but surely learning.

I think the advice I’ve heard most from “older” 😉 moms is to clean less and love more. We all have a tendency to want things to always be in order… our kids, our house, our husbands (kidding ;)… we want everything to seem right, to look right. But I’m realizing it’s okay for things to not always be in order. Again, the reality is as soon as “everything” is in order, the toddler throws a fit, the cheerios are thrown on the ground… it’s never ending, which means it’s never-ending for us mamas.

Let’s do ourselves a favor and be intentional about being a mommy first and foremost and not be so hard on ourselves on the rest. We will never “arrive” as life doesn’t stop and continues to happen, but the reward and success we will gain from loving our children more intentionally will be immeasurable.

Love this clan of mine…

XOXO