Skip to main content

We Are Strong


 If ya’ll have been a long-time reader you already know that I am an H.B.B.Q – Has Been Beauty Queen.  I know pageants get a bad rep, but it’s a title that I carry with great pride because it means that I belong to a sisterhood of brave, strong women.

I know (because I was always the underdog) that it may seem like pageant girls are the lucky ones with their toned, tanned bodies and Texas-sized hairdos.  But the truth is, that’s not what sets a pageant girl apart.  What makes a pageant girl so great is her ability to overcome, her ability to stare the odds straight in the face and defy them, and her ability to endure the road less traveled. 

You see, beauty fades.  It just does.  After the babies come the hair deflates while the body inflates.  Those glossy lips are replaced by swollen eyes from all-nighters, and those crowns get moved off of the shelf and into the attic as they are replaced by the new trophies of motherhood and framed pictures of milestones begin to fill their spots.

I am proud of those tarnished crowns in the attic, not because of what they symbolize from my past, but because of what they have helped me to become.  You see, my Facebook feed is flooded with updates from friends from all walks of life, but it’s those pageant sisters who really stand out. 

Some faces may be fuller and some bodies slightly rounder, but that special spark that once set them apart – it still shines through.  That’s because these ladies – these women- are still choosing the road less traveled.  I see women who are leaving their marks on the world.  These are women who have followed their dreams and are excelling in the fields of business, marketing, entertainment, education and medicine while also raising their families and making their homes. These women who were once my competitors are now my heroes.

As the years go by, I am realizing that these brave and strong women aren’t just Has Been Beauty Queens.  These women are me and you.  I now belong to a new sisterhood, a sisterhood of working mothers.

 We are brave and strong.  We are walking a road that is littered with guilt, and worry, and the kind of busyness that depletes our energy every . single . day.  We are women who can juggle grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, washing clothes, carpooling and classroom volunteering while also attending meetings, closing deals, and signing contracts. 

We are women who work though lunch so that we can make it to the little league game and then stay up past midnight to make sure the uniform is clean for the next day.  We are women who sign the homework log in car rider line at school and start the conference call on the cell phone in the minivan. 

We are strong, brave women, and I am so very proud of this sisterhood of working mommas.  I’m still proud of my pageant history, but I am more proud of the Working Mom club.  And ya’ll, we have to stop being competitors.  We have to be each other’s biggest cheerleaders. 

No one except another working mom can say exactly the right words to the mother who dropped her six-week old baby off at daycare for the first time. 

No one except another working mom can comfort the overwhelmed mother who has to miss the first quarter of the ballgame because the meeting went too long. 

No one expect another working mom can understand the importance of keeping a straight face when breakfast leaves a grease spot on the shoulder of a business suite. 

No one except another working mom knows the importance of having everyone’s menu choices memorized for at least FIVE fast food restaurants because sometimes a family dinner just isn’t in the cards. 

No one expect another working mom understands that a messy house will test your sanity, but sometimes sleep trumps a clean toilet.

No one expect another working mom knows that ironing is optional and sometimes so is washing.

No one except another working mom knows that Murphy’s Law really means getting “the call” from school about the sick kid or the behavior issue– without fail – when you are in the conference room in the middle of the meeting that you “can NOT miss.”

No one expect a working mother can offer support without passing judgment.  NO ONE!!!

We know that every mother’s situation is full of challenges and no one has perfect conditions.  We value the stay-at-home mom, the work-from-home mom, and even the puppy mom.  This role is hard no matter what one’s circumstances may be. We are all moms and that gives us all the most important responsibility on the planet; the responsibility of shaping the next generation.  We are all in this together no matter what our working situation.

 We understand that, but we are also part of a unique sisterhood.  Some of us chose this sisterhood and others were thrown into it.  Either way, we are strong.  We are brave.  We are navigating the road less traveled, and we are leaving our mark on the world.  We are working moms.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A New Decade

Happy 2020, everyone!  I know I'm a month and a half behind, but ya'll, January was brutal!  Not brutal in a tragic kind of way but in a "life will wear you out" kind of way. It started off with the flu...times three!  Eric, Ellie and I had Flu B and missed the first week back to school and work.  Then Eli was diagnosed with Flu A two weeks later.  Thankfully, my in-laws stepped in to help so that we didn't have to miss any more time at work. On top of the sickness, we listed our house for sale. The work it takes getting ready for market is just crazy. But we also have people coming in and out of our home at all hours and it's just kinda overwhelming. Plus, we are finalizing everything with the builder. In full transparency, working with the builder has been the easiest part! Maybe I'll do a little update on the whole building process later this week.  Now that the dust has settled on 2020, I'm going to try my very hardest to keep this litt

Mother's Day Memories

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day.  I want to start by saying that my heart and prayers go out to the "Mommies in Waiting" and to those who are missing their Momma on this special day.  You are not forgotten. We started Mother's Day at church with our crew, and we were lucky enough to be in the nursery.  We let Eli tag along, and he helped facility "Derby Races" around the table while the kids were on riding toys.  It was a hoot!  We also made cards for the mommies. We had some leftovers at home for lunch and then I spent some time laying out while Eric worked on the pool.  It was almost 90 degrees and the perfect way to relax on my special day! Eric made me a shrimp boil for dinner, and we took a family trip to Dairy Queen.  They also have presents coming later this week for me.  Basically, they are awesome!

Hit Me With Your Best Shot

Have I ever told you that Eli loves sports?  Ha!  I look back at him with baseballs and basketballs at 18 months old ,and it blows my mind that he's still so interested.   The thing is, he doesn't discriminate.  Baseball, basketball, football, soccer...you name it, we play it! Not only do we play sports all day, we also have to watch certain videos on Youtube.   We watch "Boys of Fall," while wearing a football helmet. We watch Alabama's "Cheap Seats,"  John Fogerty's"Centerfield," and Kenny Rogers,  "The Greatest" while holding a bat, carrying a ball, and wearing a batting helmet. And now, thanks to Space Jam, we have to listen to the movie sound track while shooting hoops!  That's a blast from the past! He hasn't found a song about soccer or golf...YET! And with all that playing, who has time to run inside for a potty break?  Not this boy! I never thought