Choice

I try not to live in envy and I am pretty good at it. I am pretty good at knowing how wonderful life is and how blessed we are to have all that we have. Like every human, there are times I wish for more money, more things. I know that I have everything that is really important in life. Sometimes I simply want more.

There are times when I have felt like I am the only one I know who is a working mom. I would find myself making blanket statements, in my head, about how I am the only person I know who has to work. Hello, that is not even close to true. How about all the wonderful moms I work with? There's a place to start!

I have also always found myself saying it's easy to go to work when you know you have no choice. Josh and I both love the work we do and we both bring home the same amount of bacon. When I say I have no choice, I mean with the life that we have.
I do have a choice. We are choosing to own a home instead of renting. I could stay at home if we lived in a 2 bedroom apartment. We would still have everything that really matters, but we are making a choice to both work and own a home.

Why am I talking about all of this? It has occurred to me lately that many people I know and love are dealing with things that they did not choose. This always makes me reflect on my own life. I would like more money or a house in Tahoe or even a house with a yard.I don't live in that thought process but I visit it from time to time. I especially go there when I hear people complain about things when they have all that I envy. This is what makes me think, "do I do that to others?" When I say I work because I have no choice, it's not true and I need to not say it anymore.

The other day I was talking to a friend about my new shoes and figuring out how to wear heels to a wedding in the snow. Do I bring boots and change? Do I wear them and hope for the best? When it was her time to catch up she talked about a serious health issue in her family that has wiped her out the last month. Ok..to say I felt like a jerk was an understatement. She had no choice in that situation. Life just gave it to her.

I know that this post was kind of rambling. I hope to clarify with this:

I am going to be better at owning my choices. I am going to be better at being aware of what I say to people who are going through things that they are not choosing.