As a child I always fantasized my destiny would be to fall in love with Gary Cooper and to spend my days as part of the life I saw in the movies. I thought my future held something special and believed in that dream.

Well, I have had sort of a divine life, but my childhood dreams took a back seat for awhile to what my life really was to be; nursing stitches from play injuries; spills from horses; scary rescues from Godzilla waves at the beach; tea with Barbie and her friends and ten thousand cookies baked in the middle of the night.

As a young mother, I did manage to achieve certain envious career plateaus, but not without a price. Along the way, the cost of my dreams were affecting my children.

I was missing basketball games, school plays and Brownie meetings. Basically, I was missing their lives.

I had walked away from the gift I had given them in order to chase my own windmills. I thought I could have it all.

That is until the day I drove by a school bus stop on my way to work and saw a mother wiping away her child's tears, an feeling my own well up inside of me. I knew it was time to wake up. I had to get off my carousel and pass the brass ring to another.

On my youngest child's third birthday, I gave up a promising career, walked away from my life's dream and began to enjoy the wonder of those three unique beings chosen to walk with me on this journey.

My colleagues and others close to me questioned my sanity, but I knew it was the right decision for me. I have never looked back with regret. It has proved to be better than going to Disneyland.