Am I Enjoying This Enough?

A friend texted me one night, sharing something that had settled heavy in her chest.

She was in the middle of motherhood — the ordinary, demanding, beautiful middle — and suddenly felt worried that she wasn’t enjoying this enough. The days. The moments. Her children growing right in front of her.

She felt sad.

And instead of pushing that sadness away, she let herself feel it.

She noticed it.
She allowed it.
And then she realized something that felt quietly revolutionary:

It is okay to feel sad.
It is okay to feel all of it.

As mothers, we feel a full rainbow of emotions — often before breakfast.

The Question That Keeps Returning

That question she asked herself stayed with me, because it’s one I return to again and again:

Am I enjoying this enough?

Am I present enough that I won’t ache with regret later?
Will I look back at graduations and milestones and wish I had soaked in more of the ordinary days?
Will I feel like I missed something precious while I was busy surviving it?

It’s such a common question. And I think that matters.

Because if you are aware enough to ask it, you are already pausing.

The Pause Is Where Presence Lives

That pause — that tiny moment of noticing — is where presence lives.

Sometimes we pause because we are enjoying motherhood and want to take it in:
the warm weight of a child leaning against us,
the sweet smell of their hair,
the sound of giggles drifting from another room.

Other times we pause because something inside us knows we need more pauses — more moments where we soften, breathe, and really arrive where we are.

Either way, awareness is the doorway.

And awareness is the key to being present.

When Motherhood Isn’t Enjoyable — And That’s Okay

The truth is, motherhood — while deeply meaningful and often joyful — is not always enjoyable.

There are parts that are exhausting.
Parts that feel repetitive, frustrating, or lonely.
Parts where we feel stretched thin between work, responsibility, identity, and care.

So if you find yourself wondering why you’re not enjoying every moment — or why the joy feels fleeting — nothing has gone wrong.

That is normal.

Hard seasons don’t cancel out love.
Struggle doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong.

In many ways, the difficulty is what makes the tiny moments of bliss so tender.

Life Happens in Snippets

I think it’s important that we don’t shame ourselves for all the things that pull us away from playing on the floor or lingering longer in a moment.

Because that, too, is life.

We keep moving forward.
And in that movement, we catch glimpses.

Small snippets.
Short reels.
Highlights that stay with us.

Maybe that’s why videos and memories of our lives mean so much — because that’s often how we experience the good stuff.

Not as one long, uninterrupted stretch of joy.
But as flashes.

What If “Enough” Isn’t the Point?

Maybe enjoying motherhood “enough” doesn’t mean holding onto every moment.

Maybe it means noticing when we can.
Letting ourselves feel when we can’t.
And forgiving ourselves for being human in between.

Maybe the pause — not perfection — is the point.