Mother's Day 2021

Post #2:

Here we are - post two, and this time I may actually put it out there for people to read...maybe. 

Yesterday was Mother's Day - it was amazing. J and the boys did everything to make the day perfect for me, some would not have appreciated it - or would have wanted more or different. I am pretty easy to please - I want my family around and I want them to be happy. I like to hear them laugh and be silly. I am a big fan of MY people. People in general, not so much. That probably sounds bad - but it is honest. 

Being a mom is tough, I just posted about this, but I feel like I can put more out there in this sort of forum than I can in a mass market sort of world. Haha - I don't think many people will read this and that makes it easier to say what's really on my mind. 

As a mom we are ready to fight people for and about our kids. We are ready to protect and defend them. We are ready to teach and train them, ready to push and pull them. We want them around and want our space - we want them to want to be with us but we want them to be independent as well. Parenting is just a series of contradictions. It is beautiful and chaotic and hard and scary, soft and kind, rewarding and wonderful. 

We work to make sure our kids are prepared, we want their education perfect, their careers settled and big money makers, we want for them to be "successful". Who determines what success looks like? How do we plan their lives? We want them to have more, be more and do more than we have done. 

There's the rub...we want them to have it all and be it all - but do we stop to find out what all looks like for them? There is finally a shift beginning to happen - trade schools are beginning to be almost ok - for other peoples kids. Military is a great idea - if they are stuck and can't really do anything else. 

I am one of the first to admit that I don't post or brag about grades and classes taken. I will scream from the rooftops if my kid is a kind person and does good things. Now, many will say I may not have anything to brag about, maybe my kids aren't going to a prestigious school or have full scholarships in sports and academics. Might be true, might not.  That is nobody's business. 

I fight for my kids - if fighting means I shelter or spoil them - I'm ok with that. The world is a cold, hard, shit filled place where people you trust turn out to be liars. Kids will learn that fast enough on their own - I will not ever have to teach that particular lesson. As a mom, I am a firm believer that kids should always be able to crawl on your lap for hugs and pets, they should always be able to eat you out of house and home and if you have truly done your job, they will fly away strong, resilient, confident, independent and will always know their way home. 

Thanks for sticking with me - I was a little scattered today - to many thoughts running around in circles.

Hope to see you again - 

Shayla 

L & B approx 7 & 10 yrs old

 

Here we go -

 Blog Post 1:

↑ This will probably stop being a "thing" eventually...

Here we go - 

So as I mentioned in the "About Me" section, I am currently working on "Shayla 2.0". Not sure what that is going to look like, but I am excited to find out. 

I don't expect this to be a big deal, just a place to ramble on about various subjects and I already know it will be my mom who is my biggest supporter. Now, that is not to say that hubs and the boys won't be supporting and pushing me - they just won't be as vocal and honestly probably won't read many of these posts. I'm ok with that, this will not be for everyone, ha - maybe not anyone but me! 

A little bit more of the bio:

I am almost 47 (gulp), honestly not sure how that happened. In my head I am still 30ish; however my waistline, knees and sleep habits scream otherwise. 

I have been married for 25 years in June. Not always easy, pretty or fun but always the choice I would make again and again. More on that another time. 

I have two amazingly wonderful sons. My oldest is 20 and the "baby" is 17. We are a close family and they mean everything to me. They have been the full focus of my existence for the past 20 years. This subject will also warrant its own post. 

We also have two French Bulldogs, Daisy and Mabel. They are clowns and absolute crazy demon dogs. We wouldn't change it for anything. 

I am a military spouse currently living in Germany. It is AMAZING and yes, you probably guessed, another separate post. 

Thanks for lasting this long - I hope to "see" you back next time. 

Shayla