I love and hate quotes like the one above. I strive to give me kids my best every. single. day, but some days, I just don't have IT. You know, IT. I'm exhausted, overwhelmed and I just can't. Some days, my best is McDonald's for dinner. Some days, my best is to just get the laundry cleaned and dried (forget the folding part of the process). Some days, when my seasonal depression kicks in, my best is to just watch movies with them. Most days, my best is a quick hug and kiss before bed; not a long, drawn-out bedtime routine. Some days, my best is just mediocre. And on most days, I'm happy with mediocre. I become dissatisfied with mediocre when I read quotes like this one, and set the bar WAY too high.
Now, on rare occasions I will make some amazing Pinterest meal, get ALL the laundry done, mop all the floors, shampoo all the carpets, school all the children (and they make A's on all their tests), fill my husband with his love language, rock my training, and still have energy to spare. But that's not the norm. When I expect the rare to be the norm, I feel inadequate. When the rare becomes my standard of best, I fail.
Instead, I want my kids to hear me say, "I'm doing my best", but still experience the real me-- the broken, in constant need of God's love and forgiveness, me. Because who am I kidding? Apart from God's grace and guidance, I am nothing. I can do nothing. But with Him, I can be MY best- and that's not being Martha Stewart-Rodriguez. That's being the real me.
