I wasn’t made for this- I was made BY this.

What if I told you that yesterday was a good day, a great day? That as the sun cast a warm glow over the evening sky, and my kids raced each other up and down the block on their scooters, I was grateful? That in that moment, I was filled with joy.

Would you believe me? 

A year ago, I would have struggled to believe that myself.

But it’s true. And it’s truly a miracle. I may not be a wife, I may have become a #singlemom & #divorcee before my kids have even entered Kindergarten, but that’s okay. I know I’m so much more. I have SO much to be grateful for. I’m not faking it, I’m not pretending, I’m proud of who I’ve become & how I’ve rebuilt my life.

It’s awful to realize your spouse is unfaithful. It’s awful to grieve a marriage. It’s awful to divorce.

But what is so FAR from awful is realizing how strong you truly are. It’s an incredible discovery. And a discovery that only comes when life puts you to the test.

I’ll be brutally honest here. I never thought I was strong. When my (ex)husband “worked” late nights every Wednesday (ha) and I had two kids under the age of 3, I asked my parents over for dinner so they’d help me with the bedtime routine. I was burnt out. I told my friends with deployed husbands that they were so strong. I told them that I didn’t know how they parented on their own for months at a time (despite the fact I’d been a military spouse myself). I flat out said that I could never do that.

I didn’t believe in myself. 

I didn’t know what I was capable of.

But now I do.

So if you are struggling right now, I hope you read this and think, I CAN do this, I WILL survive this.

Because you can. You will.

If I can do it, you can too. Because if I can survive a horrible betrayal, an ex who continuously lied to me, who was incredibly cruel even after we split up, so can you.

I wasn’t made for this, I was made BY this.