Before I got married, I considered myself adventurous. I went skydiving (which is awesome! Totally recommend.) Took spontaneous trips to Vegas, and got really creative when I was broke. 🙂

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always been a hard worker as well and was very responsible with my obligations of work and whatnot. But I also had so much fun.

I didn’t think I would get married. When I worked in the corporate world, I saw myself traveling at least once a month on business and taking annual vacations to Europe, Ireland, and almost everywhere.

So what happened? I found the most amazing man and got married in my early twenties. Seven years later, I have two young children, am a stay at home mom, and I write novels in my free time. I must say that life turned out better than what I had planned for myself. My husband is my best friend and we have so much fun together, and my kids are too adorable for words. Of course, having my debut novel come out in February is a huge bonus.

But what made me think about my life was when I told my five year old son that I used to go rock climbing. He looked at me and scrunched up his nose. “Are you teasing?” he asked.

Sigh. My kids see me so differently, and I don’t blame them. Since I have a little one who won’t sleep unless she’s in her crib, I don’t even go camping right now. My current lifestyle gives off the appearance of a woman who, while getting regular exercise, doesn’t get out much. Some of that can be attributed to my baby weight. I’m still working on losing it (I’ve lost 50 pounds and counting), but being overweight really makes a difference when you’re trying to hike or run after your children. Plus, I gained so much weight with this last pregnancy that it gave me major knee problems. (The joys of being a mom, right?)

Of course, once the kids are older and I’ve lost the weight, I’m pretty sure I’ll come off as more active. I definitely miss camping and will go as soon as my little one is ready for it. I’m also hoping that my kids will let me teach them kick boxing since it’s something I love.

But I guess the question is, how will my kids see me? How do my friends and neighbors see me now? I’m sure they see something totally different than what I think.

I remember when I was a teenager and my mom had told me that all she wanted to be when she grew up was a homemaker. I stared at her in complete disbelief. That’s not how she came across at all. She was a single mom who worked full time at the hospital. She took good care of us, but I never would have guessed that her ambition was to stay home and raise children. Now, irony of irony, I’m doing the opposite of what I had aspired to, and the opposite of what she did.

So what about you? How did life turn out differently for you? Do people around you see you as something very different from what you see in yourself? I’d love to hear about it!