World's Okayest Mom

So, I saw a picture of this mug shared on Facebook, and I thought, "Wow, that is a really awesome mug..."

But it took me a few seconds to get to that thought.  My initial reaction was that it was a joke statement. Then, I was appalled that someone would be broadcasting that they are just "okay" as a parent, but then it sunk in.

Yep.  That's me.  The World's Okayest Mom.  And I'm okay with that.  I thank the Lord every single day for the two wonderful children he has blessed and enriched my life with.  I thank him for my husband.  Although I love him dearly and hold him in high esteem, you know what?  He is just "okay" too: The World's Okayest Husband.  He isn't extraordinary, he's not the very best at everything he does, he lets me down from time to time, and as parents, we both let our children down once in awhile too.  And that is also okay!

Before I had any children, I envisioned myself as super mom, doing everything in my power to be the very best that I could be.  I envisioned my children as obedient, quiet, calm children who listened to me the first time without arguing or questioning.  Due to my supreme parenting, no doubt.  If you have kids, you are probably laughing by now, and if you don't but you are frequently annoyed by other's children, wishing these parents would reign them in, maybe you are in the same boat I was and have thought the same thing.

But then they come.  I realized: either I am an epic failure, or I just got a dose of reality!  I fought it for a long time, thinking, "I CAN do this, and I WILL get a handle on this 'Mom" business, and I WILL raise terrific kids!"  What a laugh!  An exhausting laugh, to be sure...  Well, the terrific kids part is a blessing from God, because they sure are the best!

I'm learning that being a parent isn't easy (not that I thought it would be) but it isn't without it's rewards.  And it isn't a race to see who is the better parent or whose children become the better children.  Being "okay" is great!  Because then you are real. Kids like to see and learn best from parents who are real.  And accepting that things will never be perfect or exactly as imagined has helped me to relax and just enjoy all the messed up pieces of my life.  -->  It's like when your child hands you a paper that has been scribbled all over and they tell you it is a pretty picture of *insert child's imaginative description here* and you are genuinely proud and hang it on the refrigerator or frame it for the wall...  The picture is meaningless...  It has no rhyme or reason, and it's probably all wrong, a pink dog or yellow sky, for example...  It's just "okay" but its beautiful and perfect in every way.  And that's how God made it to be with us.  Because if we were perfect parents, then we wouldn't need him. But you know what?  God is the perfect parent and loves our messed up drawings so much more than we could imagine.  I love the way that being a parent makes you see God so much clearer...

So yes!  I am the world's okayest mom...  And it's absolutely perfect.