Being a parent is always challenging. Almost every mom and dad will tell you that it's rewarding but difficult.
If you're a working parent, it can be hard to deal with the fact that you can't spend all your time with your little ones. Many parents actually feel a ton of guilt about this.
Aimee Nelson is a working mom who wishes she could spend more time with her son and daughter.
She and her kids have packed schedules. After she gets done with work, Aimee rushes to her kids' schools and sporting events. When they get home, they eat dinner, do homework, and go to bed.
And then, suddenly, it's time to do it all over again. Aimee just wants her kids to know how devoted she is to them.
Recently, this working mom got some well-deserved recognition from her daughter, and she shared it with her friends on Facebook.
Aimee shared her story on the Facebook page Love What Matters, where it got a lot of attention.
Within less than a day, the post had over 5,000 likes and 234 shares.
Aimee wrote:
As a working mom, I often feel like I’m at the mercy of work and school schedules.
Days consist of scrambling to get the kids’ things ready before I rush to get to work at 7 a.m., putting in a long work day, then spending my nights at school and sporting events.
Then it’s dinner, homework, and bedtime.
Every night as I do one last goodnight kiss to my sleeping 8 and 10 year olds, that familiar feeling washes over me —mom guilt.
Did I spend enough quality time with them? Did I tell them I love them enough? Was dinner healthy enough? Did they watch too much tv tonight?
Was I too strict by not letting them stay up for '5 more minutes' or snuggle with me until they fell asleep (for the 3rd night that week)?
The self-doubt is continuous. No matter how many hugs, kisses, or ‘I love yous’ we get from our children; we moms still worry that we aren’t doing enough.
So we trek along day after day, hoping our babies see the sacrifice, the unconditional love, the countless ways we try to get this parenting thing right… hoping one day we will get some reinforcement that we are doing something right.
For me, that day came this morning. As I walked out to grab my work ID and keys, I noticed they weren’t in my usual spot.
As I frantically searched for them, I came across this sight: My 8 year old daughter had made these notes for me before bed.
She left my ID and sunglasses, and a note for everything else — ‘Ready to drive? You can pick which rings you want. I thought you might want these. Want your lunch?’
I found a bag in the refrigerator with water, soup, and oatmeal for me; along with a note saying: 'I gave you the keys to my heart.'
She may not know it now, but those notes scribbled in crayon were just what I needed that day!
They showed me that maybe — just maybe — I'm doing something right.
Aimee's amazed that so many people were able to relate to her story, and moms everywhere commented that they felt exactly the same way.
One woman wrote, "You are doing well mum! The fact that you question how you're doing means, you're doing well! Because clearly you love them and you do your best for them and, that's all any of us can do!!"
If you can relate to Aimee's post about being a working mom, please SHARE this article with your friends!
