other moms

Today I was able to catch up with an old friend. It had been at least 3 years since I had seen her and now that we are living in the same town again we were finally able to get together, and it was so good to see her.

This is a friend that I used to work with. I got to know her in my first job placement at John Deere and in so many ways her and another girl took me under their wing, they showed me the ropes of John Deere and young adulthood post college, invited me to their houses for dinner, invited me out with their friends, and truly made me feel welcomed in a new place. 

As we caught up on each other's lives today I couldn't help but think back on those times and memories in Kansas City and then think about how drastically different both of our lives look today. Marriage, children, different jobs, jobs as stay at home mamas, new friends, new churches, new surroundings. It's really amazing how much can change in just a short time, isn't it?! I mean to think that she has never met the man that means everything to me, or the two little people that have undeniably captured my heart from the instant I knew of them.

We spent a great deal of our time together talking about these differences in life and the paths that lead us to them. We also talked about friendships and how that changes and evolves throughout time. We shared a lot of the same ideas, struggles, frustrations, joys, and challenges of being a wife, a mom, being married to someone that works in a management position in John Deere - and all that that alone entails!, and lots of other things. But we also had very different ideas, beliefs, views of the way the world around us works and is. 

She does Crossfit and I like to run, she loves yoga and I need something more aggressive, she swears by essential oils and I've never tried them, she eats clean and I'm working on it! Just to name a few.

But as our conversation dwindled and our time together was cut short by demanding kiddos and a dentist appointment I thought about all the things we shared and agreed on and couldn't help but smile. So often as a new(ish) mom I find myself comparing myself to other moms. Thinking that so and so's kid is already potty trained, and so and so only eats organic, and so and so doesn't vacinate, and so and so is already on a waiting list for this or that preschool....and so on and so on. Why is it that whenever I get "real" with another mom we share so many of these same struggles of comparison? I think for some it's because those other mom's make them feel that way. We all know that one mom that always makes you feel a little less worthy of your mom title, or a little more self conscious about your child's behavior, or like you just aren't doing things quite right. And quite frankly it's just annoying. 

As moms we are all blessed beyond measure, truly. Woman everywhere would literally give everything they have to be a mother and we are blessed with that title every single day. So why belittle other moms around us simply because we do things differently? Quite frankly I find differences refreshing. I love feeling challenged by someone's thoughts and ideas, when they aren't being fed to you without being asked for it! Every single one of us has a beautiful gift and journey to give our children that encompasses different thoughts, ideals, beliefs, traditions, etc. and I'm so glad we do.

After visits like I had this morning I feel refreshed, challenged, renewed, and thankful for a rekindled friendship and reminder that we are all different and that's perfectly ok!