Finding Yourself in the "Parenthood"

Up late watching last week's Oprah, the topic is Motherhood. Mothers are telling secrets about things they do to their children. I thought to myself, "can I be the same Yolanda I used to be, before Brooklynn?" When I first had my daughter it was very hard to find a way to be Brooklynn's mom and Yolanda. Yolanda was not the mother type. She was wild and crazy. But Brooklynn's mom can't behave that way. I am responsible for what kind of person she is going to become. Wow, that's a great deal of pressure. I never considered that when I decided to become a mother. Now, six years later I think I'm a pretty good mom. I have changed. At first I felt like I had lost my old life but when I think about it, I did loose my old life. Good! Yes, at first it was bad but now that I have this new life (her's) I can start all over. Everything I have learned I can teach her. Maybe she won't make the same mistakes I have made. She will have more information than I had. I will not let her believe in fairy tales and play with Barbies. She will live in reality and play with humans. She will learn how life really goes. Life isn't fair and people don't always live happily ever after. Parents don't be so hard on yourselves, being a parent is like being a doctor; you take the oath but it's still a "practice". I love my daughter, but I love me too!