The realization of my tendency to push for perfection was my first step to making better choices and getting better... with time.

The way this may look for me is that I'll tend to forgo the perfectly shaped bread buns to make room for my toddler's help; I'll acquiesce to getting a little less done at night to welcome my guy home in peace and work on creating a loving space, and I'll leave the house well in advance to make up for my toddler's walking pace. In the end, I amble too, and marvel at the cracks in the sidewalk, count the pebbles in the wall and smell all the roses as well as the weeds. I'll say yes to a purple jumper with a beige skirt with yellow polka dot leggings AND rain boots on a sunny day. One day at a time, more and more, these are my choices.

With my realization and the wish to change my automatic tendencies to always push for perfection, a family motto was born — "Happy, not perfect!". And I like to keep it in my view too —it's on the fridge, it's the first thing I see when I come home and the last before we leave, I even have it on my bathroom mirror!

With all the changes and smoother sailing through family life, I've felt inspired to add a new affirmation "Love first."

May love, be the very threshold to all your to-do's today.