Victories are Sweet

We were a house divided this weekend.

I'm a Vanderbilt fan (Yes, I purposely torture myself with near heart attacks and heartbreak week after week and have for years) and my husband is a die-hard Georgia fan (We have a dog named Herschel Walker, after all).

So this is the one game of the season that I love to watch with him even though I usually end up disappointed and taking all sorts of jabs because, well, there's no guarantee which Vanderbilt team might show up to play.

Not this week.

It was a beautiful win for my Commodores, and I was able to send my nephew all sorts of messages sharing my joy and relishing in his disappointment for just a few minutes, much like he gets to do most years.

And my husband was even a gracious Georgia fan, wishing that his team had won, but most of all, was happy I was happy today. #Wow #ThatOnlyTook10YearsofMarriage #HashtagsSayAllSortsOfThingsDon'tThey?

It got me thinking, though. In relationships, is it more important that YOU win? Or is there satisfaction in seeing the joy your partner is experiencing in the moment of their victory? This weekend, my husband showed me he is fully capable of sharing in my joy even in the midst of his own disappointment. (I'm giving him a ton of credit here. He already knows Georgia's shot at the SEC East or National Championship game are long gone!) But, I'm not letting this moment go by without recognizing the selflessness in the gesture. Because it's there.

And it's a good reminder. It's not always about the winning. Sometimes, it's about bowing out and stepping aside even at the expense of your own joy. Because ultimately, when you love someone, their happiness is also your happiness. That doesn't mean that your happiness has to depend on this other person; they aren't responsible for your joy, that's a tough burden to carry. But why not maximize the happiness and joy you get to experience by basking in the joys and happiness of those around you?

It's contagious.

Go Dores!

See? Everyone loves to see the Commodores win one now and again! Even Georgia's Coach, Mark Richt!

Just Living the Dream

I haven't blogged in forever. I always intend to make time to write, but like most other things, life often interferes with those good intentions. And when I say life, I might as well just say "Kirby".

My father called me the other day mid-afternoon, and I answered the phone while my 3 year old was in the middle of a full. blown. tantrum. 

"What is she crying about?", he asked.

A better question might have been to ask what ISN'T this child crying about???

To be honest, it has completely slipped my mind now why she was having a tantrum at that moment. Perhaps it is because the episode of Bubble Guppies was over. Maybe her brother walked away with her sippy cup. A leaf might have fallen from a tree in a way that displeased her. With Kirby, you just never know. The logic that is her mind baffles me. Three year olds are crazy. She just turned 3 a few days ago. I'm pretty sure this has been the longest three years of my life so far.

When Dad asks what I've been up to, my response is usually "Just living the dream, Dad", because even in the midst of the craziness that often surrounds me in my home, I am living my dream. For years, I wished for this very thing: to work for an amazing company from my home, and have the opportunity to raise my children while doing something that I love. 

Still, it isn't always easy. There are times that I have to tune out the madness (that is a 1, 3, and 8 year old, two dogs, and a husband) and wrangle the impending insanity in order to gather myself and, well, keep it together. 

Oliver Wendell Holmes said, “Insanity is often the logic of an accurate mind overtaxed.” 

So this blog, I hope, will be a place for me to attempt to maintain my sanity and UN-tax my mind a bit. My work preaches the mantra that Vulnerability is Sexy, and while I have no problems being honest and upfront, being vulnerable is a bit difficult for me, because it seems so... uncontrolled. In fact, in those moments, I usually cry. (Who am I kidding?  I always cry).

I hope this blog is also a place for me to share my personal journey to choose joy each day, and to hold me accountable! Too often we get caught up with everything that is falling apart around us and focus on the things that are going wrong. I want to focus more on scattering joy--mine and yours--because honestly, we ALL need more of that in our lives.

As I was hanging up the phone with my dad, he laughed and said, "Alright, Go live your dream."

That's the goal.