I am A Mother and An Educator

I always knew I wanted to become a mother and an educator. I never realized how much the two jobs would go hand in hand with each other. As an educator prior to children, I always told myself that there would be strategies I would use when I became a new mom. This is true to this day, but I have realized that as a mother, there are intrinsic motivators I have added to my tool belt that have developed my skills as an educator, and I am grateful for being able to wear both hats.

I realized I wanted to be a teacher in high school. I loved working with children and being a mentor to my peers. I always felt that becoming an educator would be a great fit for me. I also knew in high school, I wanted to have a family where I could be the best mother to my own children when the time came. I had my whole family life planned; I would graduate college, find the love of my life, and start a beautiful family. My dream came true, but it took longer than expected, and I wouldn’t change my road to motherhood at all.

Becoming a mother is hard work! Once I graduated from college and completed my bachelor and master degrees in education, I decided to take a few years to travel the world, and to better my occupation as an educator prior to motherhood. After all the fun I had, I found my rock, my husband, and the father of my children, Jackson and Marley. When we found out we were pregnant, we were in shock because of how quickly it happened. In addition to HOW rapidly we knew our pregnancy results, the first doctor’s appointment was equally as exciting.

The technician asked us if we knew what we were looking at, and we both replied with, “That is the baby on the screen.” The technician responded with, “Those are the two sacks!” I immediately went into question mode, “What do you mean by the TWO sacks? Should I be concerned? Is this normal? The technician replied, “This is very normal when you’re having TWINS!” I was in complete shock and began to laugh uncontrollably, while my husband went into silent shock mode. I remember seeing the thought bubble that formed above his head. It housed an infinite amount of dollar signs because we now needed two of the many baby items for our future family to be! After the shock of learning we are pregnant with twins, we both came to terms with the exciting news, and we acclimated to the logistics of getting ready to care for multiples.

My pregnancy was a breeze until Thanksgiving weekend 2016. I felt good, and the babies were healthy and growing, but I was placed on bed rest at 24 weeks, and after 7 more weeks, Jackson Lucas and Marley Jane were born on week 32 and 6 days. When they came into the world, it was like I was a character in a hospital TV show. I delivered in the operating room along with my delivery doctor, 3 training doctors, 3 nurses, and 2 NICU doctors (SO many people!). My husband and I came up with 3 different sets of names for our little family because I didn’t want to find out the sex of the babies prior to delivery. I only cared about and prayed for healthy and happy little babies. When Baby A was born, they announced it was a boy. Then, my husband turned to me, and asked, “How does Jackson Lucas sound?” I was elated, and I knew Baby B was a girl, because we only had one set of baby names for boy/girl twins. Although Marley Jane was a little more stubborn when it came time for delivery, she arrived, and she was beautiful. As a mother, this was a special moment for me. I cared for and carried my little humans inside my belly for a long time, that when they finally arrived, all that mattered was the love and hugs I had for them. I knew in that moment, I was ready to be a mother and I would do anything possible for my little ones.

Jackson and Marley stayed in the NICU for 20 days. This was the most challenging experience I have dealt with to date. I knew the NICU was the best place for them, but I couldn’t stop crying every time I had to say goodbye. 20 days felt like an eternity, and I truly believe that the bond I created with my little boy and my little girl is stronger because we had each other during that challenging time. On the day I was hoping to give birth, our little nuggets came home. I remember being scared and elated all in one. This was it, my time as an educator helped me become the best mother I could be and becoming a mother has helped me educate my students and my own children in various ways. I am thankful every day for being able to create and care for my beautiful children. Becoming a mother has changed my perspective on many things, but I will always stay true to my roots, I am a Mother and an Educator.