So the old saying goes it takes a village to raise a child. I have heard it many times. It always makes me smile.

A smile that runs right to my soul. I smile because of course, it is true. I have a village that helps me with my child daily!

My daughter and I are surrounded by people who love on her and claim us both as one of their own. People that help me with childcare, give discipline advice, spiritual instruction and her education. I value each of these people and there are truly no words for the gratitude that I feel for each of them. They are the forces that make our world spin.

But what I rarely hear of is the village it takes to raise a mother. I mean one fall day I was rolled out of the hospital and placed in a car and that was it! I had this amazing little human and I was charged with keeping her alive. No instruction book, no follow up calls to see if I was alright. No advice hotline?!? Nothing!

Enter my village. Village e is the right word in the sense that it is a group of people that make me feel at home and at ease. But each of these people is a warrior of sorts. So in a way, I have an army of amazing souls helping to raise me.

I have been held when I cried over yelling at my daughter. I have been talked off the edge of extreme anger when my angel daughter seemed to have been possessed. They have accepted my calls and gave me advice when my daughter pulled her first whopper of a naughty move and needed to be disciplined and I was at a loss as to what should be done. They have bought me a cocktail and shared their own war stories.

They have been there to make special moments even more special by celebrating with us. They have complimented my parenting or the way that we have chosen to live at the moments I needed to hear it most.

This village of warriors has picked me up and carried me when I can’t get through another day. They have reminded me that I am a mother and that I am just the mother that my daughter needs. But even more than that they remind that I am also a woman named Nikki. I have my own interest and desires. They stretch me and push me as a person. I am growing every day as a mother. But thanks to each of these people I am also growing as a person.

That personal growth is strengthening our family. Strengthen me so I can raise this wild and spirited daughter of mine, so she can one day change the world in a way that only she can.

In the meantime, my warriors will hold me up and breathe new life into me. So mamas, be thankful for the village that surrounds your children and help to raise them. But please do not forget to be grateful for the village that is raising you as well. Because without them none of this is possible.