Hey guys!
Happy International Women’s Day! Today I woke up and reflected a little on the women in my life. I’ve been so blessed to have a support group of women since I was born. And I’ve been even more blessed to meet some amazing women along the way.
The most important woman in my life is my mom. If you know me, you know how I am literally obsessed with my mom. She encourages me to be outgoing and go after the things I want. She is always there for me when the things I want don’t necessarily work out and she is always ready with some Ben & Jerry’s and a Gilmore Girls marathon. She is the most loving person I know. She is not happy unless my sister, my dad and I are all happy too and she does not stop going until we are all OK. She has taught me what unwavering love looks like. On top of that, she has also been a strong woman herself. My mom recently went back to work and is a pre-school teacher to a ton of beautiful little children. She has carried over her love from our home to her class room and I know she is teaching those kids how to love, how to be compassionate and how to be a good friend to one another. After a pretty bad health scare in late 2017, I was scared for a long time that I wouldn’t have my mom for as long as I thought I would. However, she always made sure I was ok. My mom ended up being ok and overcame what was happening with grace, however never throughout the whole process did she stop loving. She continued to love and support my whole family, and she truly is my inspiration and biggest supporter.
Another inspirational woman in my life is my younger sister Sarah. Most people think that younger sisters are meant to look up to the older sister, however I look up to Sarah every day. Sarah goes off the beaten path and makes her presence known in every place she goes. Sarah has never been a follower and I am so in awe of how confident she is. Even from a young age, everyone was playing soccer and Sarah said she wanted to do something else so her and a few friends came up with field hockey, a sport that was not yet played at her young level in my town. Sarah ended up being an incredible player and inspired me to start playing too. She started playing at the high school level when she was in 7th grade and was on Varsity with me her freshman year of high school (and started over me but we don’t need to talk about that). She was incredibly skilled and level headed on the field, and she is like that in life too. She can look at situations from the outside and understand everyone’s point of view. She is incredibly giving, from her mission trip in Belize to her service trip in Prague to only using metal straws and reusable cups because she loves the environment, she makes me want to be a better friend and a better sister every day. I know she looks up to me but I look up to her every single day too. She is the most beautiful, smart and passionate person I know.
And then I have my friends, I could go on and on about how all of friends are so pivotal to my life, however this would become a novel. So I’ll give you all a short statement.
To Skye, my oldest and truest friend, you have taught me what real friendship is. We don’t need to talk every day to be best friends, however it’s always like no time has passed. We will always be each others support system until the end.
To Courtney, you have taught me how to be strong. You truly are the strongest woman I know, and I know life can be hard however you always smile and have so much grace and let your love for others shine through.
To Tori, you have taught me how to be a multi-faceted woman. You are your own person and there is truly no body like you. You do what makes you happy and have so many passions and talents. You are unapologetically you.
To Sarah, you have taught me how to communicate and how to be a good friend. You are such a good friend to everyone you meet and radiate such positivity. You are truly a ray of sunshine.
To Sammy, you have taught me how to be there for others. You are always the first to drop something to be by your friends side, and your heart is so big.
To Vanessa, you have taught me to be brave. You’re the most honest person I know and have taught me that I am strong and that I should be honest with others and myself. You’re also the only person that can relate to having an Italian mother, so thanks for sharing my love of chicken cutlets a muzzadell.
And to my newest friend Daniela, in the short time of knowing you, I have loved you every step of the way. You have taught me confidence and how to adapt to change. I love growing with you by my side.
I have so many women who have been so pivotal in my life. I am constantly supported by a giant group of girls who are all so strong and so smart and so beautiful. I hope you all have women in your life who have supported you the way these women have supported me. I truly can’t imagine life without them.
Happy International Women’s Day to all of you smart and strong women!
XOXO
Kristin
