Connect What is the most rewarding part of being a mom?

The most rewarding part of being a mom isn’t the milestones everyone sees. It’s the quiet moments no one else ever will. I love that I get to be their safe place in a world that isn’t always gentle. It’s a love that stretches you (literally and figuratively), a patience you grow into and a strength you didn’t know you had. Somewhere in the middle of raising them, you realize they’ve been raising you too.

What is the biggest lesson motherhood has taught you?

The biggest lesson motherhood has taught me is that no one has it all figured out, and we were never meant to. In raising them, I’ve been shown my strengths, my triggers and my capacity to grow. Loving them has never been about perfection, it’s about presence. It’s showing up when you’re exhausted, holding it together when you feel like you’re falling apart and still choosing them in every moment. It’s surrendering control, choosing patience, and learning as we go, together.

What would you do with $20,000?

I would turn the $20,000 into a full-circle moment. I’d use the money to take my mom and two daughters on a three generation girls trip. My mom hasn’t had the opportunity to travel very much. To be able to send her to a place on her bucket list for her 70th birthday would be surreal. My mom was a single mother of 4 who gave up so much for us. I’d love the chance to truly celebrate her and pour back into her because she really is a super mom and nana.