Tag: Motherhood

“Parenting teenagers is an exercise in letting go, while holding on with all your heart.” – Michelle Cruz-Rosado

Day 21.  Letting go with faith was definitely today’s theme. Thank you, God, that my son and his friend had an amazing day today, and thank you for keeping them safe as well. 

Two Things I Am Grateful For

  1. I am grateful that my son could add another new experience to his bucket list this year.  He had spoken about wanting to attend a Sharks rugby match over the last few months.  He called it out as a goal for next year.  He must have wanted it quite badly because God decided to move the timeline up.  I am also really happy that he was able to experience it with one of his best friends.  Of course, letting him attend without me took a bit of faith on my part.  A lot of alcohol flows at these events, so my only prayer was that they didn’t encounter any drunk people who were also looking for trouble.  Thankfully, God heard that prayer, too. 
  2. My son has been blessed with many firsts this year.  His firsts included a cruise, a trip overseas watching his favourite soccer team play at their home stadium, and even seeing amazing exhibits at the museum in London.  He saw some of the exhibits in his textbooks and was thrilled to see them in real life. He used to enjoy visiting the Pietermaritzburg Museum as a pre-schooler, so I was thrilled to know that he hadn’t lost his love of museums.  I am grateful to everyone, and especially God, for making all of my son’s new experiences possible this year.  He has really been blessed. 
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One Moment of Joy

Just having my son home again has been a real joy.  I have barely seen him today but it doesn’t matter.  What matters is that he is sleeping in his own bed tonight.  Tomorrow, he is off again, so once again, I have to loosen the reins and have faith that he will be ok and enjoy his time away.  When he was younger, I used to worry that he would enjoy his time away from me so much that he wouldn’t want to come back home.  How much more self-absorbed and insecure could I be!🫣 I know better now.  I know now that while he might not miss me when he goes away because he is enjoying the moment, he will always love me as much as he always has, and he will always be grateful to be home when he returns.  I guess I am also just preparing myself for the day he goes to university.  I only have two more years with him at home.  

Well, that’s it from me today.  Thanks for popping by.

Bye for now.

A Month of Gratitude 2024: Day 11

Hello there! I have to admit that today I am tired. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, though, and thankfully, it is clearly not a train. Two more sleeps until Friday!!

Two Things I am Grateful For

  1. Around this time last I was so excited because I had been invited to lead a squad in the business. It was quite an honour and I was so nervous. Today I heard that my squad would be dissolved. I am really nothing unhappy about it. I am grateful. I am grateful for the opportunity to lead an amazing team and to learn from them. I am also grateful for the opportunity away. Leading two teams was no joke. It took it’s toll on me. I take my hat off to Senior managers and directors who have to lead more than one team. It is an interesting challenge.
  2. My son received his school report today. It was not a pretty sight, and I was disappointed to see his marks. However, he did pass, and for that, I am grateful. Two more years of high school to go, and then I will be the mother of a university student!
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One Source of Joy

I took my friend’s son off her hands for a short while at work today. School is out, and she didn’t have an au pair for him today, so she had to bring him to work. He is pretty shy, but he knows me, so we took a walk to the Zen Garden to watch the Koi swim and have a look around. Unfortunately, the monkeys were out in the garden, so we left sooner than I had hoped we would need to. They scare us. I had forgotten how much energy a four-year-old had. It was challenging keeping up with him…lol. It was great to spend time with him and to pay forward helping a fellow mum out in the office. I had so many people help me when my son was little, and I was forced to bring him into the office.

Thanks for popping by. I hope you enjoyed the read. Let me know what you are grateful for today in the comments.

Bye for now.

A Month of Gratitude 2024: Day 5

Well. It’s 23:30 as I write this so I am definitely cutting it close today. I just didn’t want to break the chain.

I have to admit that I am super tired as I have only just finished the urgent and important stuff on my plate. The good news is that tomorrow is a team get together day so it will be a bit of downtime for a change.

I guess the thing I am most grateful for today is that I can afford the technology that I have. It is liberating. Yesterday afternoon, I took my son to play soccer with his friends, and I needed to wait at the venue. I also had a meeting that I needed to dial into. So there I was, multitasking to the max, and all I needed was my cellphone and AirPods. I even found myself dashing into Starbucks in the middle of the meeting because I really needed a coffee. None of this was possible 10 – 15 years ago, and in South Africa, this level of convenience is still out of reach for at least a third of the population.

For my son, this is all the norm, but for me, it is utterly mindblowing that my whole world is on that cellphone. I don’t even need a purse anymore! I am really grateful that I am able to afford and use the tech that is now available to us. It’s amazing!

I am going to keep it short and sweet tonight. Thanks for popping by!

Bye for now!