Who said you can have it all?

It's been almost 2 months since my first post, and I am laughing at myself now, because when I started this blog, it was at the end of a very long, horrid week. Upon signing up, I  imagined I would be caught blogging on my laptop in the closet past midnight, typing away with my fingers on fire and foaming at the mouth over the craziness of it all. Ha! I can just see it now! To my (pleasant) surprise, I've done better under pressure than I thought I would and do you know why that is? The Lord my Savior is first to thank for all the courage and strength He provides me with because without Him I'd be nothing, but also because I stopped trying to do and be it all . Now, understand that my house is never clean on the same day that the laundry is folded and dinner is made. Never. So I wasn't really "being" it all, but I consumed myself with the want for it. I wanted to look perfect and have dinner made when DH got home all while being in a great mood. I wanted to be able to go kick it with some girlfriends and laugh over lattes without having to pay for it later with an exasperated screaming toddler or a needy baby. I wanted to have a perfect home with all the laundry folded and put away and have something cute to wear for every day of the week. I just wanted more than I could give myself or my family. I see people on social networking sites every day and how lovely they look. And I would wonder, how in the world is everything so perfect for some people? Over the past few weeks, God has been working on my heart and here's a little something that I believe He wants and needs a lot of you mommy's to hear; you can't have it all! Somewhere amidst the perfect lives of others that we see or hear about, a sacrifice is being made. Let me break it down for you and how I've come to understand this little obvious concept. A few weeks ago, a dear friend of mine picked up my son Ezra for a few hours, yipee! Just me and the baby and so many possibilities! I decided I would shower, fix my hair and make up and look great for the rest of the day. Well, the rest of the day came too quick! That hour and a half that I spent getting myself ready up to someone else's standards could have been used to do something for someone else! I know it's important to take care of yourself and look great, bla bla, but my understanding of taking care of myself is so different from those that I was comparing myself to. You see, taking care of myself should go in the order of first spiritually, then mentally, then physically. Instead I was looking pretty and feeling quite empty. I realized that in that 90 minutes I had sacrificed sweet "agoo" moments with Adam, maybe reading a few chapters of the Bible or even a parenting book. I could have baked my love some cookies or done something extra special for him, but I didn't. I agree that moms need to take time for themselves, but this just wasn't the way for me. The time I take for myself would be better spent on something that beautifies my insides over aging outsides, besides, my husband can't even tell when I'm wearing makeup and tells me every day how beautiful I look. What more can a girl ask for? In the future, if you see me posting pictures of crafts, or cookies or looking prettier than my usual (lol) keep in mind that it's very likely that the background of that photo has dirty diaper bombs laying ALL over the place, clothing spewn throughout the entire house, an empty fridge and no dinner. Yup. We all sacrifice somewhere, for if we could have and do it all, we would not need God to lean on. And ladies, the reality is, we do. So if you look like crap, haven't gotten out of your pj's or house for a few days now, then you're like the majority of moms out there who have sacrificed and continue sacrificing themselves every day for their families. I know the day will someday come when I can take a shower, do my hair and makeup and all will still be well with the universe, but as of now-- I shower, plop on a hat and whatever is clean (or at least smells good) and get the ball rolling on the day ahead with my babies. We laugh, we cry, we learn and grow and I'm not about to give any of that up for some shmear on my face or other petty mumbo jumbo. Being a mom can be a thankless job, but that's not why we do it. I believe it's called love.