I’m the mom who yells “hurry up! We’re going to be late!” a handful of times before we finally get out the door (p.s. we’ve never been late).

I’m the mom who asks a thousand times if my older one really brushed her teeth and sometimes makes her let me smell her breath because I don’t 100% believe her since I never heard the faucet turn on.

I’m the mom who comes home from carpool and immediately puts the baby in the jogging stroller because it’s the only way I’m getting any kind of actual exercise these days, when all I really want to do is come home, plop her in front of the TV and enjoy my coffee for five minutes.

I’m the mom who is buried in laundry and should just be a detergent spokesperson at this point.

I’m the mom who is constantly running around for my family- dropping off dry cleaning, searching for the one kind of socks my older daughter will wear, and buying birthday gifts for upcoming parties.

I’m the mom who’s on a first name basis with the staff at my local grocery store because I’m there at least three times a week since I always forget something or there’s a special dinner request I wasn’t prepared for.

I’m the mom making three different meals for four people every night and then picking crusty tomato sauce off of high chair straps when really I just wanna throw the damn thing out.

Basically, I’m the mom who does not stop. Just like you, reading this now.

But this morning, after my run, the baby crawled on my lap, pushed me down and started watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, while gently holding my hand. I’m not used to stopping. I’m not used to sitting still. It’s a foreign concept to many of us mothers. My immediate instinct was to wiggle out from under her and keep moving. But I didn’t.

Instead I remembered THIS is why I left a job I hated years ago to pursue writing full-time and work for myself. THIS is exactly what I’m supposed to do. There’s nobody to tell me I have a mandatory meeting to attend or a project that needs to be completed ASAP. THIS is my mandatory meeting. A meeting with my toddler and Mickey.

All of that other stuff will get done. I’ll start moving again and get back into that familiar mom groove. Just not right now because THIS is everything.

To all my fellow ever-moving mamas, I’m here to tell you that it’s ok to stop. You’ll pick it back up later and all will be right in the world.

Related video: