Am I doing this right?

I have sat down to right a new post almost every day. Some days I write them and don't publish them. Other days I write them and delete the entire thing because I don't think it is good enough.

I want it to be "perfect".

I have been reading the blogs that are participating in Blogust which is helping support Shot@Life.

It's an amazing thing they are doing. They have chosen 31 bloggers to write posts. Then for every comment that is left on their post, money is donated to give lifesaving vaccines to children in need around the world. You should go over there immediately and comment!

Reading all of their blogs has been so incredibly inspiring and well....intimidating. All I can think is what an amateur I am. Why do I think I have anything important to say?

Maybe I don't for you, but maybe someone else can use what I write. Maybe no one else will benefit. Maybe I will see what I am suppose to do with my life. Who knows?

All I know is I fill led to do this. I woke up in the middle of the night with a blog name. So there has to be some reason for me to be typing something.

I will leave you with two quotes I found on Pinterest last night. It sums up what I need to do, or not do!

Source: twitter.com via Samantha on Pinterest

Source: emilymcdowell.posterous.com via Samantha on Pinterest

Mommy Guilt Coaster

Last week was a crazy week. One minute I was up and the next I was down. And then add Mommy Guilt in the mix and it was the craziest roller coaster week ever.

We found out we had a couple grand in needed expenses. Then I got offered a job. Down. Up. Mommy Guilt.

I got offered a great job that seemed perfect for me. But in two days, I had to give them an answer, find childcare for my daughter, take a class the next week, and start teaching the next. It seemed crazy but it seemed possible.

I had so many emotions going through my head. I was looking for a sign. I thought I had had one with the job offer a day after I learned of some great expenses.

All the while, I had mommy guilt going on. If I go back to work I am putting work ahead of her. If I don't let her get to know other kids in daycare she is missing out. Oi Vay! No matter what I chose, I felt like I was losing or messing up someone else's life!

Any other moms experience that? I know you have.

I wish there was a a magic button to see which is the correct answer to your situation but there isn't.

I received 3 really good pieces of advice during that week, especially over the job option.

1. What is the right thing for your family situation today, next year, but today, with everything as it is?

2. Which option would you regret the most if you had to choose at this moment? Missing out on the job or missing out on moments with AG (my daughter).

3. Go with your gut.

It all came down to AG.

(I know a ton of moms who work and they are incredible women and I know that they love their kids more than life itself. So I am NOT saying that they chose wrong. They chose what works best for them.)

My thoughts that week were: I should show her a mom can work and still keep up with things at the house even though I don't keep up with things at the house now. I had the whole fall planned for us and now I have to cancel it. My hubby works away a lot so when he is home, I would be working. But then I would have an income. I could help pay for the debt I incurred for my business.

But I couldn't find childcare that wasn't more than our house note and that I trusted that had the hours we needed (at the time). Maybe I will find the perfect childcare soon. I just didn't have it when I needed it. I would regret putting her in a childcare I wasn't one hundred percent happy with. And that was my gut feeling.

I was sad about missing out on the job but at peace with the decision I made.

I hate when life gets in the way of life...but that's life, huh?!

What are some mommy guilt stories you have?

The Tragedy of Vehicular Heat Stroke

Within one week, 3 children have died of vehicular heat stroke here in middle Tennessee. The last one was just miles from my home.

My heart goes out to these families. Especially the one close to home.

The most common questions I have seen and heard are, "how could this ever happen?" or "how can you forget a baby in a car?"

To those questions, I pose this question. Have you ever driven down the rode and realized you have no recollection of driving to the point you are at?

I heard a doctor on the news commenting that our brains have autopilot and we just do some things without ever thinking of them. When something new comes into play, such as a new stop sign on a road we have traveled a million times, we don't stop, because it isn't in our autopilot. So accidents happen.

When a busy parent or caregiver is going through their routines, something like an extra stop can be missed.

I only have one child and sometimes I can barely keep up. This latest mom had four. One that was still waking up in the middle of the night. And she was working from home.

I remember seeing an episode of Oprah about this topic. A mom, who this tragedy had happened to, recommend that parents put something in the front seat of their car when a child is in the back so that they always have a visual reminder that the child is still in the car.

I have held on to that advice and when it is just my daughter and I in the car, I put her diaper bag in the front seat. It is a small thing that can have life altering consequences.

My daughter's Mother's Day Out is now starting a new policy where they call us if our child has not arrived by 9:30 and are scheduled for that day. I have been thinking of other cues busy parents can give themselves.

Here are a few of them:

-Set an alarm on your phone for 10 minutes after you should have dropped the child off.
-Keep their diaper bag or toy in the front seat while they are in the carseat.
-Hang something on your mirror just for when the child is in the car. (Remember: it can't stay there all the time or your brain will eventually miss it.)
-Tie a small ribbon on the top of the steering wheel.
-Have a parent friend that agrees that you both call each other after drop offs.
-Set an alarm clock in your house or office for 10 minutes after you should arrive back from dropping that child off.

What other ideas for cues do you have?

Introduction

This blog is my journey as a wife, daughter, sister, friend, pet owner, business owner, nurse, christian, human, and mother. Most importantly, my journey as a mother.

I have a beautiful almost 18 month old little girl. She is the perfect combination of my husband and I. She has a laugh that can cure heartache, a smile that is infectious, and the sweetest voice in the world.

I wanted to start this blog last year but didn't think I really had anything to add to all the other information out there. Maybe no one will read this or maybe someone will, but I decided to start it now because I need a place to think out loud.

Being a relatively new mom, I know I have so much to learn. I know there are other women out there who can teach me. I know some parts I will have to learn by going through it and others I can avoid by heeding others advice. I look forward to learning from this blog as well. I would love any readers to comment all you like!

As I (well, we, my hubby helps with her too but this isn't his blog!) raise our daughter, I realize that this whole parenting thing is tougher than it looks at times. What is becoming so evident to me is that we as parents control the future of our world. Not just my daughters world, not just our families world, but the ENTIRE world.

This blog is my journey but I also hope to inspire other moms to see that we are carrying the world on our hips. As moms, we need to see that the things we teach our children will affect our world.

What are we showing them with the way we live, the we talk, the way we love?

Welcome! I hope you don't get bored here!