My twins were two years old. My husband and I were leaving for the first time for an extended trip. I can’t remember the details of where we were going or why. What I do remember is the deep ache that ballooned in my chest as we rolled our luggage to the garage door. Their little faces with red-rimmed eyes and Rudolph the reindeer noses, tears smeared across flushed cheeks as they wiped them on our pant legs. Sticky hands grabbing at our hips begging to be clutched tight and not let go. My heart pounding and willing the rest of me to protect them from their heartbreak.

Since then, I’ve realized that those instincts to shield them from hurt and that unraveling that starts in my chest and billows through to my toes as I see them in pain will always be a part of how I mother, but even back then, I knew that leaving them to honor other commitments was part of parenting. A good part of parenting.

As parents, our greatest desire is to ensure our kids know we love them. That we are here for them. That we are present and we support them. In this world that goes a mile a minute, it is hard to feel as if we are giving them our undivided selves, because that is simply not reality. We are divided. We are divided with our professional careers, with upkeep of our homes, upkeep of our daily lives with groceries and meal-planning, with upkeep of our relationships with extended family and friends. Like an elastic toy, we are stretched to extremes, each corner pulling us hard in every direction. Our hearts tethered in the middle like the mid-section of a well-worn tug-a-war rope. 

But this is okay. This is truly okay. This is better than okay. This is what we should be showing our kids. I remind myself to let go of the guilt of being a mom with multiple shoes to fill. I’ve allowed myself to invite my kids into my world rather than living in their world.

I allow them to see how dedicated I am to the things that color my life and make it full. I show them that I am one hundred percent committed to my profession. I tell them about my patients, about what I did during the day. About what was hard, about what broke my heart, about what was exciting or astonishing, and what made me proud of what I did at work. I tell them when I am excited to take a trip with their dad or go on a date night. I tell them when I am having a girls night with friends and how girls nights with my friends are just as fun as when they have play dates with their friends. I bring them along when we drop off things for someone in need and tell them how important it is for us to not only show up for each other but also for our community. I let them know when I am going to exercise and remind them that this is time when I need my complete space to just help my body stay strong and healthy.

In each and every one of these moments, I am taking time away from my kids and giving it to another part of my life. What I want them to see is that I love them and despite them being my greatest priority, my life does not revolve solely around them. That this world does not revolve around them. There is a world outside of them, starting with the world their very own mom lives. And outside of that, there is a greater community thriving and breathing. I want them to see the importance of independence, self-sufficiency, and working hard. I want them to realize I will always be here for them. I will be their safety, their net. That I am their greatest support, but I am also so many other things to so much else in this world. They are the most enriching part of my life, but there is so much more that fills it up and makes it whole.

And this is okay. This is better than okay. 

Now, more than ever, the mom-guilt can be crippling. So many of us are working from home and having to divide ourselves without the help of physical space to have our kids in school and us in our work buildings. Now more than ever, we are aware that our kids are in need of our attention with home-schooling and being all ever present at home. We are having to tell them to wait their turn as we focus on other obligations. The glare of our inability to provide them with undivided attention is fierce. The shadow that this guilt casts on us inevitably grows taller and more pervasive. I definitely have found myself more irritable, brisk, and wild-eyed at my kids on a more frequent basis, but I try to remind myself that it’s okay to ask my kids to be patient and to let them see that there are other priorities that matter.

They will always be my number one, but that doesn’t mean I can drop everything to cater to them with their every desire. You are here. You will always be here for them. But let them see you in all your color and life. They are watching, and they will learn from this. They will see that you are strong, self-sufficient, and upholding your value as your own self, your value in your family, and your community. As their mom, they see you as one of the strongest presence in their life. What a beautiful thing for them to see you as the whole person you are.

I know there is guilt. I am right along you with the daily ugly mom-moments that we criticize ourselves harshly for. But your kids know you are the foundation of love that underlies all of this daily noise. They know you are theirs and them yours. Even on your lowest days and hardest moments. Give yourself grace to work through this day by day, and know that there is tremendous strength and beauty in letting them into your world and not just revolving around theirs.