Dear: My Children, all of 6 of them

Dear beautiful children in my life,

I write this today thinking of all my kids and my niece and nephews I routinely watch over. Life is full these days. Summer is quickly coming it an end, the sunlight is gone before 9pm now and school prep has begun for everyone. We've done a lot of wonderful things together this summer; swam, watched movies, trips to kings island, trips to multiple pools and parks.  We ran around outside catching fire flies, had dance parties, and told countless stories around my dinner table. We are a family.

This will certainly go in the books as one of the most challenging years in our lives. The older ones have endured a lot this year, and still found a way to smile. There are scars on our hearts as we move into each day, and yet we must still continue to search for silver linings and the beauty in all that we do.  There is beauty in a tragedy, if you can live with the heart ache and sadness that filters through each day, but the profound ability to rise above is one of the greatest gifts.

My heart has stretched further than it ever has, and there are still days i struggle. This year accompanies change not only in the family dynamic, but my first year as a full time mother.  I know my role is not only to be the best mother i can be to my own children, but to be of most support to my niece and nephews, my in-laws, and those who need it more than I. To find God in all that we do, and grow together.  It's what we must do, even on the hard days, and the emotions that will come and go. But they are just temporary.

My ability to write is limited, but I hope there is more time soon.