Real Women

Lately, I've been thinking about real women, and what it takes to evolve from an insecure, immature woman to a Real one. I guess it might have something to do with my rapidly approaching 40th birthday (in September). A little background:
I hated my 20s - at least in terms of how I felt about myself. I didn't know who I was, much less who I wanted to become. So you let other people's opinion of you become your own. Not that I had the luxury of ample time to contemplate these existential questions - in my 20s, I moved across the world, married, and had three babies. In that situation, it's hard enough to figure out what's for dinner, let alone what you want to be when you grow up!
And then I turned 30. It was literally a turning point. Our family was complete, and I began to take steps toward building a career. I would encourage any woman, even if you don't have to earn an income, to find something you're passionate about, and pursue it. And it has to be something other than your kids. If your kids and their activities are your sole passion and purpose, it puts too much pressure on them... imho.
For me, that passion turned out to be painting. In building my decorative painting business, I found a creative outlet, a source of income, the gratification of happy clients, and the guts to become (I hope) a good boss. And I guess, somewhere along the way, I grew up. I struggle with all the same things as every other woman on the planet: housework (and the marital division of it), raising kids (one of whom keeps toeing the line), work and finances (the perpetual tightrope), and last but not least, my weight!
When Cheryl and I created The Cottage Junk Co., our tagline presented itself readily as follows: "Real Women have junk in the trunk." It's on the back of our famous logo tee (available for purchase at our First Monday Trade Days booth in Canton, Texas, and coming soon to our website www.thecottagejunkco.com) and we wear it proudly and welcome the chuckles and attention it garners.
Being a Real Woman is all about embracing the junk in your trunk. From the debris of your life that invariably gathers in the back of your vehicle (for me, it tends to be stray shinguards, discarded snack wrappers and that missing soccer ball pump, courtesy of my kids, mixed with paintbrushes, rags, scribbled directions and sample boards for my painting business, leaving room only for that latest fabulous junk find, on its way to our storage/workshop to be transformed into Cottage Junk), to the baggage which, good or bad, has made you who you are today, to the couple extra pounds we all think we carry around on our backside.
Embrace all of it, knowing that Real Women have junk in the trunk. And get yourself a t-shirt to prove it!
Happy junking!
Rikki