Prior to motherhood, that wasn’t too difficult to stay on top of - I had all the time in the world to read the personal development books and listen to podcasts etc. Motherhood dramatically changed that. If you’ve read my story, you know that it took me a couple of years to fully adjust to my new needs as a mother. Keeping my cup full took a LOT more intentional effort than it did before I became a mom.

Most days, it’s a matter of proactively taking care of yourself, body, mind and soul - and doing the things that put you at a good level of energy. Meaning, eating right, staying hydrated, taking your vitamins, reading your spiritual reading, saying your daily prayers, writing in your gratitude journal, turning on some fun music, getting yourself ready for the day, staying on top of whatever level of cleanliness you’re content with etc.

But, some days, that isn’t enough - if you’ve been there, you know what I’m talking about. Some days, it seems like no matter what you do, there are just so many negative thoughts and temptations trying to take over. Sometimes it’s circumstantial, sometimes you don’t know what’s causing it. In the last year, I’ve experienced some really unprecedented mental states of being. Yes, me, the happy-go-lucky sunflower girl - I’ve had too many times to count, days, weeks, even months, of mental slumps (to put it lightly ) that took a LOT more effort than just “an attitude of gratitude” to pull myself out of. While I’ve come a long way, those days are still going to come up now and then - I’m not perfect.

I say this to be real. I say this to be honest, relatable, genuine.

When I started coming across some quotes about the Sunflower, I was taken aback by the simple beauty of it. Sunflowers were given to me by multiple people last year on my birthday when I was actually having one of those “extremely, extremely tough” days.

No matter what the weather, what type of day you’re having, or LIFE, our job as Catholics is to just always look to the light and BE THE LIGHT for others - just as the sunflower never questions that God-given role, neither should we. We’re here to know, love and serve Him - come what may.

Allowing myself to sulk in my feelings on a bad day, I now realize is actually completely selfish. Imagine the joy that so many would miss out on if sunflowers closed up when they didn’t feel like shining. The JOY that your spouse, children (and you!) miss out on when you remain in a negative state of mind. I’m not saying we should pretend to be happy when we aren’t, but I am saying it is the CHARITABLE thing to do (charitable to God, ourselves, our spouse, our children, our family/friends) to make 100% effort to turn our situation around. “Turning it around” is obviously easier said than done, and it looks different for everyone - it’s an ongoing journey to learn what works for you.

Although we may not understand, God always has a plan. I can see now, looking back, that some of those really hard days were allowed to happen because someone else needed to hear from me, that I too have my struggles. It doesn’t do you any good to take advice from someone who isn’t relatable, who hasn’t “been there”. I am so grateful to have discovered a plethora of resources that have helped me tremendously along this mindset journey within this season of motherhood. I hope you’ll stick around as I share them over time, including a full course that I hope to release soon. For now, if you are struggling and need someone to talk to, I am absolutely here. Please don’t hesitate to reach out.

God bless you my friends!