Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't Lose.

In 2015 Hunter and I binge watched the show Friday Night Lights faster than we had ever watched a show before. Actually, it's probably the only series Hunter has ever actually finished. We were obsessed. If you haven't seen the show, it's on Hulu and is a must! It's about a high school football team in Texas with an incredible coach. It follows the life of the players and the coach and whether or not you like football, I promise you'll like this show. And if you don't... then I have no words! Ha! In the show, the team chants "Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't lose" before every game. Hunter and I became obsessed with this saying, along with half of America. We ended up adding it to our family motto because the saying holds so much meaning that we want our girls to embrace. Here's what the saying means to me...

Clear Eyes: Living life with a clear focus. I know that life gets hard. I know that things will always get thrown our way that may distract and deter us from becoming who we were meant to be. However, I think that living your life with clear eyes means having the ability to see clearly during the hard times rather than letting the end goal become blurry.

Full Hearts: I think that going through life with a full heart means living each day with gratitude. It means not taking what you have for granted and appreciating even the smallest things. When you have a heart full of gratitude, you're sure to see the good in each situation. I also think it means keeping your heart full of love, passion, confidence, honesty, humility, and dedication. It means working on yourself to become your best self and the best way to do that is to keep your heart full and your path (eyes) clear. 

Can't Lose: At the end of the day, if you've given it all you've got, you cannot lose. This slogan means so much more than simply winning the game, but also imparts the importance of being the best version of yourself. Because if you win with a hard heart and blurry vision, did you really win at all? By approaching life with honesty, heart, and accountability, the "loss" is not really a loss. Instead, this saying imparts the value of doing one's best and accepting that it doesn't always mean "winning" in the world's eyes. The important element here, is that it does not mean the non-winner is a loser, but rather that by upholding values of perseverance, humility, and dedication, the individual is a winner regardless of what the "scoreboard" says.

As the girls get older and life gets tougher, I hope they always remember to keep their eyes clear, their hearts full, and remember that winning isn't all about a number or a "prize" but rather what's on the inside. 

All my love,

Aleigh Joy

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Being Her Example

As we put Oaklyn down for bed tonight, Hunter asked... "are her eyes brown?" He has always wanted a brown eyed girl. His eyes are brown, the only one in his family, and when the nurse in the hospital told us Oaklyn's eyes are brown Hunter was thrilled. Over the past 4 years, I've noticed hints of green and bits of gold in the sun so I personally think they are more hazel. But, Hunter is still holding out for his brown eyed girl. So when he asked again tonight if her eyes looked brown, I responded as I usually do; "yeah they have some brown, but I see some green too." Oaklyn then looked up at me and said, "just like you, right mom? Me and you both have green in our eyes, right?" I responded with "yeah mine have a little bit of green in them." Then Hunter said, "but you also have brown like daddy!" Oaklyn did not like that answer and quickly let him know that her eyes are like mommy's and not his. Oaklyn is pretty much a spitting image of Hunter, with my hair. We hear it all the time, but Oaklyn doesn't like it. She is always telling me that her hair is like mine and not her dads. That her clothes are like mine, her smile is like mine, one time she even told me her pinky looks like mine. I've always thought it was sweet that she wants to be just like me, but today it felt sweeter than ever. As she looked up at me with a little wrinkle in her nose and the cutest baby teeth smile, I felt so much joy that I was raising a daughter that wants to be just like me. 

After putting Oaklyn to bed and getting ready to put myself to bed, I started thinking more about raising my daughters. I felt so excited for the future... for back to school shopping, for prom dresses, for lunch dates, cooking holiday meals, for dance recitals, trips to get our nails done, girl talk, planning their weddings, and for teaching them that they are strong women. I kept coming back to Oaklyn's words, "Just like you mommy." They kept playing in my head. She wants to be just like me. She wants to look like me, act like me, talk like me, dress like me, and right now I am her biggest example of what a woman should be. My daughters will grow up knowing their mother did things a certain way, and then be able to choose if that's the way they want to do them. So, I hope to be setting the best example I can be. Whether we like it or not, we all become like our mothers... right? I hope as my girls grow older, I give them an example theyare proud to mimic. If you choose to drink orange juice with your breakfast every morning, chances are your daughter will too. If you choose to wear heels to church every week, your daughter will probably beg you for a pair of heels. If you show an interest in dance, your daughter will probably want to be a dancer. Our girls want to be just like their mommies, so let's give them an example we're proud of. We're raising the future of women and it's up to the mamas of little girls to be an example of strength, love, integrity, kindness, positivity, devotion, and virtue. I feel like if I want my girls to turn out the way I hope, I need to make sure I'm a good example first. I hope my Oaklyn girl knows that she can be and do whatever she puts her mind to, but if she chooses to be like her mama, I promise to give her an example I'm proud to have her follow. 

All my love,

Aleigh Joy

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