10 Great Things a Bad Year Has Taught Me

Sometimes our great expectations for a new year are cut short by life’s realities.  This has been my experience with 2013 so I am quite happy that midnight is just minutes away and soon this year will be nothing more than a distant memory.  With that said, I am a firm believer that all things, good and bad, happen for a reason so tonight instead of partying it up I’m spending a relatively quiet night at home reflecting on what I’ve learned:

1.  I’ve learned to follow my instincts.  Actually, I’m sure I learned this many years ago, but this year my instincts were bang on.  If you think there’s something wrong with your seemingly healthy child, trust your instincts and take them to a doctor (or two or three).  If I hadn’t, there’s a good chance one of my kids wouldn’t be here today.

2.  I was reminded that being a good mom isn’t about having a perfectly clean house, with perfectly prepared healthy meals which were prepared while wearing trendy clothes and brand named shoes after a long day working a fulltime job in the 20 minutes before dropping kid number one and their teammates off at their game and then circling back to pick up kid number two.  Being a good mom is about REALLY being there for your kids when they need you, and especially when they don’t want you there. It means being OK that your house is a disaster, you’ve got no make-up on, and a pile of laundry awaits because you’ve been spending your time on what actually matters – your family.

3.  The world didn’t come to an end when I decided it was time to just say, “No!”  In fact, it got much better once I did. Life can get really hectic.  It’s alright to slow it down a bit.

4.  Great bosses are few and far between.  I am incredibly blessed to have the boss I have.

5.  Sometimes you just have to believe in the unbelievable and have faith in things that can’t be explained with logic.

6.  Orange and white barn cats that show up on your back deck every night looking for snuggles are quite possibly the best therapists on earth, especially when you’re trying to wrap your head around #5.

7.  A hug from an old friend is one of the greatest gifts you can receive.

8.  When your teenager says, “I hate you” they are really saying, “Mom, I need your help.”

9.  Watching your child lose a game gracefully can fill you with far more pride than if they had won.

10.  When my book deal fell through it wasn’t the end of the world. It may have taken me four days crying in the fetal position to realize that, but in the end it was exactly what I needed all along to figure out what my ‘true’ place in the publishing world is meant to be.  More on that soon…

I wish you all a wonderful New Year!