I Graduated Too

About a week ago, my daughter graduated from college.

I was a super proud mom—but if I’m being honest, it felt like I graduated too.
Since the moment she came into this world, I had been everything to her. Mom. Nurse. Cheerleader. Therapist. Teacher. Coach. Provider. Protector. Prayer warrior. Moms, you know the list never ends. We wore all the hats—sometimes all in one day.

So yeah, when I saw her walk across that stage, I imagined myself in a cap and gown of my own.

Her journey wasn’t just hers—it was ours.

During her first year of high school, her father lost his long, three-year battle with cancer. I went from co-parenting to sole parenting overnight. And while I was grieving too, I had to figure out how to help her navigate our new reality in a way that didn’t shut her down or isolate her. That was really hard—because she was and always would be a daddy’s girl.

Truthfully, I didn’t always know what to say.
Did I make mistakes? Absolutely... But somehow, we got through life together. It wasn’t always pretty, but it always got done. We would argue, then make up—and back again. That was the hard part—these rage containers we created. Sometimes, I made her a container for my rage. And sometimes, I was hers. That’s the beauty and the battle I found in raising a girl. The clash of hormones, the ache of grief, the weight of lost love… and yet, the deep, unshakable bond underneath it all.

Fast forward to today…
We made it.

Let me say that again: WE MADE IT.

Some days, I looked back and wondered—how did I do it?
I put her through private school. I sent her to college and kept her there for four years—debt free. No loans. No financial aid. Just a mama on a mission.

How did I do it? I sacrificed.

I sacrificed things I wanted for myself: quiet nights. Vacations. Consistent sleep. Dinners at home. I missed games, school events, and family time—not because I didn’t want to be there, but because I was out saying yes to new opportunities, so I could give her a future with more yeses than I ever had.

And even when I did show up—sometimes it was late.
Not because I didn’t care, but because I was juggling too much and trying to be everything, everywhere, all at once. That was a sacrifice too—walking in late, out of breath, knowing my heart was there long before my body made it.

Every time I said yes to that next deal, client, contract, late night, early flight—I was also saying no to something else.
And that was the invisible tax of parenting that nobody talked about.

So yeah—I graduated too.

Graduated from sacrifices. From tuition payments. From juggling it all and somehow making it look doable.
That day, I stood proud—not just of her, but of me. Proud of us.

Because I didn’t just raise a graduate.
I raised a resilient, brilliant, whole human being.
And in the process—I grew too.

This was for every mom doing what felt impossible:

You weren’t crazy. You were just committed.
You weren’t invisible. You were just focused.
And you weren’t alone. We were in this together.

So when you saw me at that graduation, smiling from ear to ear, just know...
I earned that smile. I earned that walk.

I’m a Simple Girl—
and I just graduated too. 🎓

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