I picked up pizza last night for dinner. And you know what, I didn’t even apologize for it. We had pizza for dinner. Because the point of dinner is to get fed. So I did, I fed everyone, and that was enough. That is enough.

It has been sort of rough week. I spoke in front of the largest audience I have ever spoke for at the TEDx Peachtree conference last Friday. It was an amazing experience, a message I believe in. But it totally wore me out. And Saturday I got slammed in the face with a sinus infection that I am just very grateful I didn’t get before the talking. By the time I got back in my classroom on Wednesday, having missed four days in a row with a weekend in between, my students had completely forgotten how to act right.

Yelling at my students while hopped up on the cold medicine you have to get from the pharmacy because apparently you can make meth out of it was less than relaxing. (Good news, my students remembered where they were and are now back to normal). I was completely beat and I had an internet meeting about ten minutes after I was scheduled to get home.

Dinner needed to happen without me, and it needed to be something the kids would for sure eat. So I ran through the Little Caesars and thanked God that I can get my family pizza without ever getting out of my car. Because sometimes, I need to remember what the goal is, and last night the goal was simply that everyone got fed.

I think we need to remember that more often. What is the goal?

I got to pick Juliet up from pre-k for the first time last week. Her teacher mentioned a Halloween party and I was momentarily thrust into a Pinterest induced planning whirlwind. This would be the best Halloween party EVER! Complete with cupcakes and sandwiches and games and crafts and punch. All homemade and adorable. All out of my kitchen.

When the flyer came home two days later explaining the party there was a note on the bottom: Per school district policy, all treats needed to be pre-packaged. (Food allergies are real, y’all. No one wants to accidentally hurt a kid because their counter had peanut butter on it.)

I read the note, and suddenly all of my Pinterest plans turned to dust. And I was relieved. Because what is the point of a Pre-k Halloween party? The kids having fun (bonus points for goody bags stuffed with things they love.) Snickers bars and pumpkin bean bag toss without home-made bean bags meet that goal just fine. With the spider rings I picked up for 99 cents, I would say I may have even over-achieved.

The goal of dinner is to feed everyone. The goal of a Halloween party is to have a good time. The goal of my kids costumes is to let them dress up in ways that make them happy. It doesn’t have to all be perfect. Good enough is enough.

So here’s to Pizza on a Thursday, store-bought cupcakes, and anything else that meets the goal while giving us a break. This life is hard, and there is a lot to do. And mostly, we do those things well. Give yourself a break. Remember the goal.

Are we having fun? Is everyone being fed? congratulations. You are enough.