Growing Boldly: Dare to Build a Life You Love by Emily Ley

Author:Emily Ley [Ley, Emily]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: self help
ISBN: 9781400211319
Google: ndTtDwAAQBAJ
Amazon: 140021131X
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Published: 2021-03-23T04:00:00+00:00

IT’S YOUR DECISION

My very best friend’s name is Kristin Winchester. We call her KNW because she is Southern as can be and loves a good monogram. Kristin is fiery. Everyone needs a friend like her. She is a gentle soul, always available to provide a listening ear. And she’s feisty and fierce, confident in who she is. Kristin and I met when we worked together about eight years ago. She was so impressive at work, always a step ahead, forever coming up with top-notch ideas, and it was clear she was destined for great success.

In 2017, after many years of infertility, Kristin and her husband, Kyle, found out they were expecting boy-girl twins. Kristin was also editor-in-chief of Southern Weddings magazine at the time. After thoughtful consideration, Kristin and Kyle made the very personal decision for her to resign from her job and stay home with their children. It was a complex decision, and yet Kristin knew deep down that this was her calling for this particular season.

I recently asked Kristin about all the feelings that come with making a decision like hers. She considered herself fortunate to even be able to have a choice to begin with. Many women aren’t afforded the opportunity to consider leaving their careers for their family. But in her case, there was a decision to be made.

Kristin shared a story that took place in a doctor’s office recently. She had been asked to complete a questionnaire with her personal information. One question asked for her occupation. As someone who previously felt defined by her professional titles, this gave her pause. And the words “just a mom” floated slowly through her mind. Yet she thought back to the years she and her husband spent saving and preparing so that this opportunity, this title of “mom” could be hers.

In that moment, she felt even more convinced of the sacred importance of her new title. She might not be negotiating multimillion-dollar projects or leading a team of people, but she was doing what was best for her family. No, she wasn’t providing an income. No side hustles, no part-time gigs. Instead, she had both feet planted firmly inside the four walls of her home. And in true Kristin nature, this became her passion. She devoted herself to dinnertimes the same way she devoted herself to planning an event for hundreds. She committed herself to exposing her children to creativity through imaginative play just as fiercely as she’d committed to conjuring up vision boards and creative briefs for days-long photoshoots. She found her calling in this season right where she was. What a beautiful thing.

What I love most about Kristin’s story is that she has unapologetically claimed her calling in this season. Kristin acknowledges that as her children grow, things may change. But she’s relishing every messy, hard minute of toddler life times two right now. Kristin told me this recently:

I want to be clear that this is such a wildly personal decision. Staying home with my children was what was best for our family.

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