Written by Brittany Gabriel – read more at www.opalbri.com

I didn’t always want to be a mom.

I grew up around kids — my mom was a teacher, and I was practically raised in a gymnastics gym. We call them “gym kids,” and I was an OG. My childhood was full of activity, noise, and constant interaction with other kids. So maybe in my rebellious years, I decided I wanted the opposite.

Once I moved away, I spent over a decade without kids in my orbit. None of my friends or family had them. I worked in a bar. My life was rooted in late nights and freedom. Becoming a mom didn’t seem like it fit in that world — so I just assumed motherhood wasn’t part of my future either. Looking back, I think I made that judgment from a place of disconnection, not clarity.

Then, five years ago, I hit a wall. I was working a job that drained me — physically, mentally, emotionally. I felt completely depleted. So I reached out to my sister (who also coaches gymnastics — it really is a family thing). After talking it through, I decided to return to the gym world. I didn’t even interview — I was just welcomed back in.

The owner asked me one question:
“Why do you want to work here?”
And I said something like:
“I just need to do something that matters and feels good.”

That was the beginning of my motherhood journey — even if I didn’t know it yet.

At first, I had no clue what I was doing. But I showed up. Slowly, I started to feel my mom’s goofiness and patience come out in me. I started to understand her more. And with each passing day, a little bit of the ice I’d built up around my heart started to melt.

I didn’t work with the littlest kids at first — toddlers actually scared me. I had no idea how to interact with them. But over time, I realized kids are amazing. They’re fun. They’re weird and wild and curious.
And they liked me.

Then I got pregnant.
And everything shifted again.

I was excited — and terrified. I read the books, watched the videos, took the birthing class. Still, questions swirled in my head:

• Will we bond?
• Will I lose myself?
• What if I don’t feel the way I’m “supposed” to feel?

The bond didn’t happen right away. I was still processing the whirlwind of pregnancy, labor, and becoming a first-time mom. But my partner — our son’s dad — was incredible. He helped with everything in the hospital, changed all the diapers, held space for both of us.

And then we came home.

That’s when the real connection began — not in one big movie moment, but in a thousand small ones:

• Late-night feedings.
• Pooping on Dad’s jeans after bath time.
• Learning that running water calmed his colic.
• Breastfeeding — something I never expected to connect with so deeply.

Piece by piece, I discovered that there were parts of my soul I hadn’t even met yet. And somehow, becoming a mom introduced me to the best parts of myself.

Now our son is four.
And he is absolutely obsessed with me.

I am his comfort.
His safety.
His favorite person.
And that… is everything.

Watching him grow and learn — watching the gears turn in his little brain — is one of the greatest joys of my life. And while he’s learning, I am too.

I’ve learned patience.
How to let go of unrealistic expectations.
How to regulate my emotions while helping him with his.
And most of all, I’ve learned that motherhood doesn’t always arrive how we expect it to.

Sometimes, it sneaks in slowly.
Sometimes, it surprises us.
And sometimes, it becomes the very thing we didn’t know we were missing.

To the women who’ve said, “I don’t think motherhood is for me”…
The moms still figuring it out…
The ones who didn’t feel the bond right away…
And to the ones learning as they go —
This is your reminder: It’s okay to grow into it.

Because sometimes, the most unexpected motherhood journey leads you straight to the best part of yourself.

💜 Happy Mother’s Day — from a former gym kid who finally gets it.