Recently I thought I’d get creative and do some fun things to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. Afterall, #quarantinelife gets pretty boring and I needed something fun to look forward to. So I browsed Pinterest as I usually do for inspiration, and I came across these sombrero cookies.
Cute right?? I figured they looked simple enough for me to pull off, because I am NOT a baker: I hate measuring, hate following recipes – hate baking, for that matter – yet I wanted to try them anyway. Plus, they looked easy, right? Nope. WRONG!
They turned into boob cookies.
You guys, how did this happen??! My kids noticed it immediately when we started putting the gumdrops on. They were like, “Um…mom…..???” Hahahahaha! Look at my daughter’s face!
Of course we ate them anyway (ain’t no sugar wasting in MY house), but unfortunately there were other problems in my “perfectly” planned Cinco de Mayo day until eventually I wanted to give up and just order a pizza.
Have you ever felt like that — like your desire for perfection was getting in the way of connecting with others? Maybe it’s not in your baking but in your DIY projects. Or maybe it’s happened while trying a new parenting hack that you were SO SURE would make your kids eat their vegetables but they threw them on the floor anyway.
Sigh.
I don’t know about you, but when things go wrong I tend to blame myself. And sometimes that’s legitimate. (After all, had I just read the freaking baking instructions maybe my cookies would’ve turned into hats!) But still, even when my impetuousness gets in the way of success, I’ve realized that’s only part of the problem. The REAL issue is that I have unrealistic expectations.
Now, I know there are some of you who are Type B and super laid back and never struggle with perfectionism. (Cookie) hats off to you. But many of us do struggle with it. And it’s not hard to see why when there are moms like Janene Crossley roaming the Internet. (Seriously, how is she real and seem so nice? I’m not nice during photo shoots. I just yell and steam and throw Skittles at my kids!)
We’ve all found ourselves in the middle of a Social Media comparison-game. But as a parent to three young girls, I NEED to rise above this so I can help them do the same! Which is why I asked God for wisdom during my Pinterest-meltdown. Thankfully, he responded quickly:
Jonna, I never asked you to be perfect. I’ve asked you to be consistent.
Whoa. That’s good. And it’s for all of us: We aren’t supposed to be perfect. We’re supposed to be consistent.
CONSISTENT IN OUR:
- parenting.
- marriages.
- faith.
- health.
- Pinterest-Game.
Simply put, choosing to SHOW UP expels comparison because it puts connection above the outcome. It therefore doesn’t matter if you or I parent perfectly (because news flash, we won’t); it only matters that we consistently show up for our kids and love them fervently. The same is true for our spouses, our bosses, our friends, and our creative endeavors.
Worry less about the outcome so the process is more enjoyable.
Friends, I challenge you today to think of ONE THING you strive to be perfect in and replace that desire with consistency. Do it for the sake of doing it – because you enjoy it, or because it will bring the people you love closer together. And even if you do it and you fail, go ahead and post it on Pinterest anyway. The world is waiting to see your “boob cookie” too.
jonnameidal.com 