Motherhood is the biggest role we have has women.  We are responsible for so much of our little human's development and it can cause so much stress and pressure on us.  I had children at least 6 years before most of my friends and family.  I relied heavily on my mom and her input to try to raise E to be a good person.  What I learned along the way is the stress and pressure I felt was self imposed.  I put the pressure there because I had doubts on my abilities and I felt ill-equipped to handle motherhood.

 E is an amazing kid, and I am not just saying that because he is mine.  I say that because of how he interacts with all people young and old.  He has this sense of respect for others that is so strong and at times naive, but he has a patience like I have never known.  There are days when I do not feel like myself and I feel like everything I do is wrong.  These are the days that E will look at me and explain all the reasons why he is glad I am his mom.

You see we pressure ourselves to be the best of the best.  Our job is hard and at times it can be thankless.  These are the days we need to put ourselves in a timeout and look at what we created.  Are they well behaved more than they are not?  Does someone comment on the manners they have when you are out among strangers?  Most importantly, do they have the necessities they need like shelter, food, and food in their belly?   Then guess what?  You are doing the job.  Stop being so hard on yourself. You are doing the most important job by being the provider and showing your child love.  By teaching them right from wrong, you are showing them how to be human.  Life isn't perfect and we all make mistakes.  Teach them that it is okay to make a mistake and they will learn from it.  You did.