You are now listening to season three, episode eight of the Relco Fascist Podcast. Welcome back to the TRC podcast. I'm your host, Aida Osuna, and I'm glad that you're here. Thank you so much for joining me this week. This week is more so for my moms out there. I know for me lately, like the last few weeks have been tough mentally. Um, so I wanted to essentially create this episode to encourage other mothers out there. May you be a single mom like myself. You maybe you're married, divorced, engaged, dating, whatever the case is. Uh, if you're a mom, this episode is for you. And I recently actually uh wrote something here and I shared it on a forum anonymously, but I want to actually share it um online or on the podcast. Um, and it's going to be I'm gonna read it. It's you're not a bad mom. And I put here a note to myself, but maybe a mama that needs to hear this too. Stop putting so much pressure on yourself to have it all together, to be a super mom and accomplish 30 things on your to-do list, yet feeling depleted at the end of each day. Will there always be things that we can do better or differently? Yes, of course. But you're also an imperfect human doing the best you can do each day and raising a little one. That's truly better than most could say. And in parentheses, I put at my baby daddy. No one prepared us for this, but it's a journey we are all figuring out. So give yourself grace and a hug if you haven't today, with love, a solo 26-year-old mom parenting the most energetic six-year-old boy while figuring this parenting thing out too. And yeah, I wrote that and I shared it anonymously on a forum. But I also feel like this needs to be, you know, mentioned on here because I know that I do have moms listening like myself, and I do know that we are balancing so much. You know, we're navigating some of us, we're navigating school, you know, we're navigating jobs, we're navigating relationships, uh, we're navigating, you know, our relationships with our family, our relationship with God, we're navigating our faith, we're navigating finances. There is so much that we navigate, and like there's no really escaping being a mom, you know, especially when you want to be an intentional mom and you want to provide the best lifestyle for your kid. Um, it's really, really hard, and it could be really discouraging. And at times it's it's tough. Like for me personally, um, Josiah is actually struggling in school. Um, my son is in kindergarten, he's six and struggling in school, and um, he does have an IEP, which is an individualized education plan, and I'm really advocating for him. And that in itself sometimes could feel discouraging because I wasn't really raised um with my parents, you know, speaking to the superintendents and reaching out to teachers and counselors and really like putting myself out there to make sure that Josiah gets what he needs and make sure that he receives the resources, uh, therapy, whatever the case is, for him to be able to succeed. Um, and you know, this is where community and like the teachers and counselors and support really come into play, and I'm forever grateful. But that's not to say that it's easy. Um, and that's not to say that I'm a bad mom. You know, I I do wrestle with that. Like, should there be more that I need to be doing? Like, am I a bad mom? Am I, you know, I do feel those things um when it comes to um mothering sometimes. I'm like, am I gonna mess Josiah up? You know, because I'm so imperfect. I don't really know what I'm doing. And I'm raising, I'm 26 years old raising a 26. No, wait, see, I'm 26 years old raising a six-year-old. And so no one prepared us for this. Um, and whatever age you are, and whatever age your kids are, no one prepared us for this. Um, and I remember before I had my son, I remember somebody telling me, like, it doesn't matter how many books or you know, resources or guides that you read to become a mom. Like, once you become a mom, it's a different ball game. So, just a reminder for myself and maybe for you too, you're not a bad mom. No one prepared us for this. You know, we have to keep going, we have to keep rolling with the punches, advocating for your child, showing up, even though sometimes I want to hide in a closet, and sometimes I do hide in the bathroom. Not gonna lie, like I need a breather sometimes, I get overstimulated. That's all right. Do what you need to do. Um, but we're going to be the best version of ourselves, we're going to accomplish everything that we want to do. We are going to be intentional moms, and we are going to still be there for our kids. Um, and once again, you're not a bad mom, just no one prepared us for this. And so I hope and I really want to pray that God continues to bless us, continues to guide us, continues to lead us in this journey of motherhood because it could feel very isolating, it could feel very like, am I doing this thing right? You know, it is this thing on like you know, is anyone else experiencing this? And mama, trust me, you're not alone. I'm here with you. And this is not to say like motherhood is just super overwhelming and crazy 24-7, because let's be real, there are really beautiful moments, and I'm really grateful for you know who's who my son is growing up to be, and his kindness and humility. And it's like sometimes we look at our kids. I know for me, I'm like, wow, like I'm really doing it, and then other days when it gets tough, and you you know, kids have attitudes, and I'm not a baby, that's my son's new thing. So, as kids become more independent, you know, they have their thoughts and opinions, and you know, it gets harder, but then it gets easier, um, and then it gets you know draining, but then it's also fulfilling. So, once again, no one prepared us for this, but we got it. I just wanted to encourage you to continue pushing and at the end of the day, continue also going after your goals. I would say becoming a mom has been like the leading thing that has continued to ground me and to motivate me and to inspire me to do better. And don't be ashamed of not having it all together because there are so many resources out there for us moms. Um, and especially if you are a single mom, um, navigating and trying to grow within your career, I'm realizing there are so many opportunities out there, like scholarships, um, organizations, mom groups, you know, and um at the end of the day, I really want to build a community of moms, you know, ambitious, creative, multifaceted moms. Like that is a goal of mine. I really want to build that. Um, but bri by brick, we are going to continue figuring it out, continue planting the seeds, continue taking action. Um, so yes, I wanted to let you know that, like I mentioned, I'm here, I'm with you. I just wanted to send encouragement to that mom that may need it. You're doing an amazing job. Your kids feel safe, they feel seen, they're well fed, they have a roof over their heads, you are nurturing, you are kind, and I'm proud of you, and God is forever covering you and your family. Know that every single day, it will not be taken for granted. Um, and yeah. I wanted to leave you with two verses just to keep you grounded. Uh, but we're reading Psalms 127, verse 3, and it says, Children are a gift from the Lord, they are a reward from Him, and that's usually a reminder, you know, to me at least. Like sometimes when it does get hard, I'm like, Whoo! This was a gift from God. You know, at the end of the day, God knew the purpose of me becoming a mom, God knew the reasoning, God knew that I was destined to become a mom, even though it wasn't planned. But baby, it's a gift from the Lord, and when it gets hard, I remind myself of that. And we're also I wanted to also share Proverbs 22, verse 6. Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it. And that's another thing, another verse that really grounds me is that like I feel like I constantly have to repeat myself, you know, like don't do this. What did I just say? Put it down, pick it up, do this, do that. You know, I constantly feel like I'm having to repeat myself, and like it's not really getting it, you know, like my child like is not grasping what I'm telling him. Uh, but then I realized like I was also that stubborn girl, like I was stubborn, you know, and I think that's a way of like God, you know, his sense of humor showing out because it's like you were candela, you were crazy when you were a kid, and now boom, you know. So um, but then at the end of the day, like, yes, I was crazy, I was rebellious, I was kind of mischievous as a kid, but now as an adult, like I I am on the right path. I am living out the values that my parents instilled in me. So at the end of the day, it does pay off. And in the moment when I didn't listen to my parents, you know, they probably were very frustrated because I had my fair share of things that I've done. Uh, but now that I'm older, you know, I'm I'm really like now I'm my mom, you know, to my kid. So direct your child um on the right path. They will never, never leave it. And that's just a reminder that it'll all pay off, it's all worth it. And yeah, continue, continue just being the best mom that you can because that's all that we could do. So that's all that I have for this week. Feel free to share with a mom that may need to hear this. Make sure that on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, wherever you're listening on, you are subscribed so you'll be notified each time that I drop an episode. Once again, I appreciate you for being here. If you want to share, you know, a confession or even just a perspective, uh, you know, an accomplishment, something that you're proud of, or something that you're struggling with, or just how your week is going. Feel free to give me a call. I would love to hear from you. The number is 813-444-8134. You could keep it anonymous, share your name, whatever you feel comfortable with. But yes, thank you for listening. I hope this helps. And I will catch you next week. Ada out. Have an amazing week. Bye.