Embrace the Season You're In

These pink flowers with the sweet, soapy scent are called daphne, and they are my Baachan's (mom's mom's) favorite flower. Though Seattle is blustery and wet, smelling and seeing these little buds around town is a reminder that winter won't last forever.

I've been thinking a lot about seasons. It seems in motherhood that the seasons come in waves, each with their own joys and challenges. In various seasons, I confess my thoughts have been...

I can't wait 'til he sleeps through the night.
I can't wait 'til he's done nursing.
I can't wait 'til he's potty trained.
I can't wait 'til they play together.
I can't wait 'til they play together without wanting to kill each other  : )
I can't wait 'til they're both in school full time.

Notice a theme? Hear me out.

If we're not careful, we can miss out on our CURRENT season while wishing that the next one were here already, gosh darn it!

​In the throes of sleep deprivation and nighttime nursings, a wise dad told us that, as painful as it was at the time, he looked back on the early days of midnight wakings as a precious time with his babies. Not saying we need to paste a smile on - parenting is hard - but instead, to recognize what's good about where we are now.

One of the first tools I give clients helps them assess what's working and what isn't. We talk about where they are right NOW. We make a plan for how they can thrive within their current season, not fight it or wish it was a different season.

One client told me she had a deep feeling of, "I'm a mom - I can't be anything else!" She was in a season of full-time caregiving for her kids (3 years old and younger) and had laid down her aspirations to be a writer.

We worked together so she could embrace the season she was in. She had a breakthrough: "I can write - right now." She carved out regular times to write, crafted a mission statement, and even brainstormed multiple blog posts she would be excited to pitch to other blogs or write for her own. The last time I checked in with her, she had enrolled in and taken an online course for bloggers, purchased a domain name, and was on a path to start a new online home for her writing.

​You might be in the nursing-and-diapers phase. Or the working-and-kid-shuttling phase. Or the business-building-with-a-1-year-old-at-home phase. Whatever season you're in, I encourage you to embrace it!

You have the gift of time, now.
You have good work  to do, now.
You've been given your family, now. 
There is rest for you, now.
You can learn new things and laugh at yourself, now.
There is good for you, now.

Wanting you to know this today,
Charissa

Your Turn!

What are you grateful for in this season?
What do you hope the next season brings?

Let me know in the comments!