I'm not going to lie- 2022 was not my favorite year. It was full of surprises, challenges, change, hard work, exhaustion, and growth beyond my wildest imagination. Your hearts were tasked with some amazingly heavy stuff this year, and I'm so darn proud of all of you and how you handled everything. While you probably would have preferred not having the stress this year (me as well), I know that we learned how to be a family and rely on each other in ways that we never did before. In one of my therapy experiences this year, our therapist said "WHAT do you want to have your children learn from this experience?" This has always resonated with me, because I/we have an amazing opportunity to teach/role model life. I decided to create a list of things that I'm hoping I've taught you through this year, and If not....I still have time;)
- "Wherever we go, this family is our fortress."-Avatar. This is the biggest takeaway I hope you get. We are Fru5 and we will always be Fru5. No matter what ever happens, you kids are ONE of our biggest priorities. Your feelings, your thoughts, your hearts. You 3 mean everything to me/us!
- Friends and extended family are EVERYTHING. We relied on family quite a bit this year. This has been so important as it solidified that even if we feel alone at times, we no DOUBT are never ever alone.
- Therapy IS CRUCIAL. How many times did you have to hear me or Dad say we were heading to therapy or group? SO MANY. Thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing your time with us with the many healing groups/therapists we met with. While this was time away from you all, I guarantee that it was time well spent so that we could be the healthiest parents/humans possibly for you. We might have taught you a few things that they taught us:) How about that?
- Nature is the best salve! We got out so much this summer, and that was not by accident. NATURE makes us all BETTER humans. I love that you 3 share a huge love for the summer season. Thank you for all the camping and adventures this past summer. EVERY SUMMER is my favorite!
- Connection is life! It seems that all of the Fru5 has various levels of introversion, which is wonderful! AND it sometimes can make us want to hunker down and stay to ourselves. I'm proud of all of us and our focus on connecting with the people out there that fill up our heart. I've seen you all do this-and it makes me happy to see you understand the importance of connection.
- Balance is crucial. This is a lifelong journey. BUT you 3 are understanding the importance of this! Balance in everything in life: good stress vs bad stress, being social vs introvert, tech time vs non-tech time, self-improvement vs accepting yourself and who you are, etc.
- Be your TRUE SELF. There is so much pressure out there to be the best, be the prettiest, be the strongest, be the happiest. AND in the end...all you have to do is BE YOURSeLF. It might sound easy, but it isn't. This has been one of my biggest lessons this year. I get to be me, ONLY ME. AND that is perfect. This also means you get to FEEL how you are feeling. Be your truth. Every feeling is safe.
- Do not Settle for less than you deserve. I have seen you 3 call me/us out this year when you feel like things are unfair, or we are responding to you in ways that are less than ideal. THIS is what I'm talking about! You know what you deserve and you aren't afraid to say what you need. I WISH I would have learned this sooner, and even though I'm being called out I'm so proud that you are brave enough (and feel safe enough) to ask for it! You get to have boundaries. HOW about that! Pretty cool.
- How the body + brain works! Dad and I have learned so much about our bodies and brain and how it is all connected. I hope to continue to teach you ways to respond when your body is activated so that you have tools to use for life! This year has reminded me that we don't always have control over what happens to you, but you MOST definitely have choices in how you will respond. The more healthy tools you have to handle situations, the better off your body and brain will be!
- LAUGH: I took life too seriously this past year. This is one of my 2023 goals. THANK goodness you all modelled this one for me this year. Thank you for that! Let's keep it going!
I know that there were more lessons learned, but these are the ones that come to mind. Thank you kids for being there, through the good-bad-and ugly. Thank you for being amazing kids. Thank you for all the cuddles and kisses. Thank you for giving me such purpose in this life. Thank you for the laughs and keeping things light hearted, when things were heavy.
You are EVERYTHING.
Love you so hard,
Mom
