Reigniting the Joy of MotherhoodSample

I'll Be Happy When...

Growing up, all I ever wanted to be was a mother. My sister and I made babies out of everything. Snow babies, water babies, bocce ball babies, you name it, and we probably pretended it was a baby. As I got older, my love for children continued to grow. It was such a joy being around young kids.

After our daughter was born, I couldn't believe how my heart grew in love and exploded with joy. But slowly, the sleepless nights, poop explosions, and cluster feedings started to chip away at some of that joy.

Motherhood is hard. It's easy to get caught up in the sacrifice and struggle of parenting kids in today's world.

Before I knew it, I was in the "I'll be happy when…" cycle. I'll be happy when my baby sleeps through the night, my kids can feed themselves, or we can go out on date nights again. How come it feels so natural to think of all the things we're missing instead of counting all the blessings we have right in front of us?

Setting goals and dreaming of the future is a good thing. But we can't let it stop us from appreciating what we have right now. The Bible tells us to give thanks in all circumstances. Are we intentionally choosing thankfulness on a daily basis?

When we practice gratitude, we stop living in the ideal future and start living in the here and now. We are no longer wishing for the next best thing.

Choosing to focus on the good is not easy, and it will take work, but we don't have to live life always wanting more never being satisfied. We can fully embrace life right now.

We can find fulfillment in motherhood today—even if it isn't what we imagined or hope it will be in the future.

I noticed on the days I live in the moment and stop thinking things like "I'll be happy when ____," our house is filled with more giggles, grace, and joy.

Do you struggle with the "I'll be happy when" mentality? Write down three things you are grateful for today.