Doin’ Good for a Special Mother on Mother’s Day with Minute Maid! #DoinGood #DiMe

DISCLAIMER: This is part of a sponsored collaboration with Minute Maid and DiMe Media.  Minute Maid will provide this prize. Minute Maid is not a sponsor, administrator or connected in any other way with the contest – and all opinions are my own.

Have people ever told you that you’re a great Mom and you didn’t feel like one?
Have you ever told someone that they are a great Mom and they told you they didn’t feel like they were?

I can tell you that many people have told me countless times that I am a great Mother, a good Mother, and a wonderful Mother;
and every single time I responded with “I don’t feel like one”
Truth be told, not many of us Mothers ever feel like we are great. We are our worst critics, I know this first hand.

Let me tell you how I came to the realization that I am not as bad of a Mother as I thought myself to be.
Last October our lives changed drastically.  During one week we lost ALL of our material possessions.  On Tuesday the kids and I were in a terrible car accident, with only liability insurance; our SUV was totaled.  The next morning, while we were in the hospital, someone broke into our house and stole everything from my back office and home store (we didn’t have renter’s insurance).  Two days later, while at the grocery store, our neighbor called us to say that our house was on fire (still no renter’s insurance).  In one week we went from living happy normal lives, to being homeless.
As we watched our house go up in flames, I continued to try to calm my kids down by telling them that at least we were all safe and together, that the worst was over.  Since that night we started our 4+ months of hotel & shelter living.  We relied solely on clothing donations and Prayers, and every time I had the chance I always told my kids that this would be an adventure we would laugh about in the future.  I always tried to make jokes, play games, cuddle; anything I could to make sure they knew they were loved.  Months passed and a week before Christmas another tragedy happened.  Their Great Grandmother passed away, one that they were very close with.  Our Family took another hit.  But I kept reassuring the kids that things would get better, to keep their spirits up.  After Christmas a wonderful organization donated $1,000 to our Family and we were definitely going to use it towards clothes for the kids.  New Year’s came and we celebrated that we had made it through the year.  Hoping that the worst was behind us, we hugged and enjoyed our night.  A week later, on Jan. 6th, I got one of the worst calls in my life.  My husband called me to tell me that our God-Daughter of 5 months had passed away.  Bella was our world, my kids adored her and they were all so close.
Our world once again broke, this time it was harder than the rest.  You can rebuild from a fire, but you can never replace or erase the pain from loosing a baby that you were all so close with.
The next week, while spending the entire day at her funeral and the evening at the re-pass, we packed up and were heading back to the hotel; when I looked in my wallet I saw that someone had stolen the $1,000 that were donated to us.
Another hit to our Family and to our hopes of things getting better.  That night Bella’s parents (Sam & Dom) came to live with us at the hotel since they couldn’t bear to go back to their home where Bella had passed.

About one and a half months later, we got word that we could move back into our rental, we were all so hopeful for a new beginning.  When we arrived, it was so hard.  The landlord left the walls covered in soot from the fire and dirt and debris from the construction.  It was hard for my children and for us adults.  We moved through it and cleaned up ourselves.  We were able to get a dining room table at the thrift store and I recruited the kids to help me sand it and make it into a chalkboard table, the biggest adventure for us yet was going to be rebuilding.  For a few weeks we slept on blankets on the floor and had no couches either, but I never once stopped telling the kids that this was just temporary.  That this was our biggest adventure yet, and it was our glam way of camping until we can afford furniture.  I never saw them cry, they always understood, supported, encouraged, and were grateful for anything and everything.

I cried often, broke when they were asleep, hated my life at times, but always remained Faithful that things would get better, they had to.  I loved seeing my kids tell other people the stories of what we had been through, their responses to the shocks were priceless; they always responded with something to the tune of “we’re just happy that we are together” or “we’re glad that we are all alive”. Always gratitude and always joy.  I never took any credit for this, why should I; it was their beautiful hearts.

Last week I had a breakdown, a big one.  I cried to a friend and told her how big of a failure I was as a Mother and how certain I was that I had ruined my kid’s childhood.
She went on to give me not only every example she has from knowing me as a Mother, but also everything my kids have ever done, said, acted like; because of my influence in them.

• She pointed out how my daughters dare not wear short shorts or low cut tops, not because I have ever told them they can’t; but because it’s the way I dress and they have chosen to be a bit more modest than all of their middle and high school friends.
• She pointed out how my children have come through possibly the toughest 5 months of their lives, and have never stopped smiling.
• She pointed out that my children’s Faith is so strong because they see how strong my Faith is that things will be okay.
• She pointed out that despite the million bad things we have ever gone through, I have some of the most well mannered children she has ever met.
• She pointed out that my kids went through 15 years as Military kids and survived 6 deployments without ever falling apart; she credits that to me but I give them the entire credit.
• She went on to tell me that I have taught my kids so much, that I have made them into the strong independent and resilient kids they are today; because I am a great Mother.
• She reminded me how my kids are the only kids she has ever known that never walk by me without telling me they love me, or giving me a hug, or a kiss; because she knows it’s what I always do to them.
• She told me that my feelings of helplessness and inadequacy are normal, and as normal as they are; I am always so much better than I feel I am.

You know what?  She was right, I have always been so focused on all of the things I haven’t done with my kids yet, on all of the wrong things I did, on all of the short comings I have had; that I never sat and thought about all of the good things I have done.

I AM a Good Mom, I have moments when I am a better Mom, a greater Mom, and even moments when I am a not-so-great Mom (just ask my kids when they are grounded);
but she’s right…
I am always Doin’ Good!

A new video from Minute Maid shows how parents really are “Doin’ Good.”
Check out this new video from my partners at Minute Maid. Share it with the friends and family in your life who could use a reminder that they, too, are doing a great job as a parent.

Do you know of a mom who’s doing a great job but may not realize it?
Let’s show them how great they are with an awesome drawing for a chance to win a Minute Maid prize pack, which includes a $50 Visa gift card.

Use the gift card to continue “Doin’ Good” with your kids (or give it to someone you think could use it to keep Doin Good with her/his family).

All entries must be in their own comment

1. To enter, leave me a comment letting me know of what Mom you want to celebrate, by “shouting” them out.  Tell me what makes them an awesome Mom.
2. 2nd entry:  Follow @militaryfamof8 on twitter.  Leave me your username in a comment.
3. 3rd entry:  leave a comment on any other post, leave me the link to the post.
4. 4th entry: share this post on any social media channel. Leave a separate comment with link to your post.

You may enter as many times as you’d like, but limit of one entry of each daily.
Drawing ends Thursday May 14th at 9 p.m.
winner will be notified immediately after the closing of the drawing

Winner randomly chosen:    S. Mcneill (emailed & confirmed)