Expectations

Have you ever felt like you somehow disappointed people in your life because you choose to live life on your own terms, to see God's blessing in the smallest things, for being happy and content even though your life is no where near "perfect"? Its not always the easiest road to take, but in the long run, when it comes to peace of mind it is far and away the better choice.
I wrote several days ago about feeling a little like an outsider in my life. I admit to being a little (ok, a lot) stubborn and insisting on forging my own way. It can be overwhelmingly lonely but I have to march to my own drummer. I am sure this causes my mother no end of distress. I may be into my forties, but having my own children approaching adulthood, I know in her eyes I will always be that little girl she held and worried about, and encouraged out into the world. My family are all practicing and relatively devout Catholics. I am not, having chosen a freer relationship with Jesus in my teens (none of them understand this-they all think I'm crazy, I think). I have no desire to climb a social or corporate ladder, I am content to grow where God has planted me, waiting to see His plan for my potential come to fruition.
I have struggled with, and learned to shrug off the expectations of others, whether it be in relation to my physical health, my emotional well-being, my career path, or the use of my gifts. And, as a parent I have tried to not impose my expectations on my children but to encourage them to make their own way, be who God has called them to be, to trust their own hearts.
Whose expectations do you struggle with? Do you feel like you are living your own unique life or following someone else's plan for you?