To The Mothers

Mother's Day was last weekend.  It is one of my favorite holidays, and I will never understand why every mother on the planet doesn't love it and bask in it. Now, I do understand that maybe they may not have the greatest relationship with their own mother, or maybe they feel guilty that they aren't a perfect mother, or maybe they have lost their mother, and that is why they don't love it. However.... I feel like I work dang hard at my job, and I take a lot of abuse with my job title. So, for that reason, I feel like I deserve Mother's Day, and I deserve to be on the receiving end at least one day a year (aren't I the greatest example of humility you've ever known?!). It also helps that I have an amazing mother as well as mother-in-law to celebrate with. So, there's my take. My kids totally owe me because of every single thing I do for them (ummm, hello? Never ending laundry, and cooking dinner every night, just to name a few), and my husband totally owes me because I got sick and fat 5 times so I could birth our children ;)

 

Anyway, like I said, the day was wonderful. An amazing breakfast, showered with darling-made-by-little-hands-gifts, some new earrings, gift card for a mani/pedi, church with the fam (I even fit into a dress that I hadn't worn in about 5 years because it fit and actually looked okay! And, received lots of compliments, always a boost to the self-esteem ;) where I was able to listen to amazing and uplifting talks, and at the end, had the young men of our ward serve pie to all of the women. It was a great day.

 My favorite part of the day every year is always, always when I am awakened by little voices and little bodies climbing into my bed, wishing me a Happy Mother's Day. It is the best ever.

After church, we took some cheesy pictures in our backyard, and then I got sit with my feet up until it was time to go and visit our own mother's. We took them their gifts (I got them a big flower pot for their front porch and filled it with flowers. Turned out cute!) and told them how much we loved them. We ate at Andy's parents for dinner, and just had a nice, relaxing, enjoyable evening. Lovely, lovely day. And the best part was, I didn't have to change a single diaper.

 

Now, onto more important things. This here mother of mine is simply the best. All I learned about mothering came from her, so I am pretty much an expert (tee hee). My mom is the most selfless, helpful, giving, wonderful, fun, spontaneous, thoughtful, person I know. I have a lot of stories I could share about why she exemplifies all of these desirable qualities, but I will just share one.

 

About 4 years ago, I was going through some hard things. I had just been diagnosed with my autoimmune disease, and was having some other health problems that eventually led to the finding of my pituitary tumor. I was on medication that made me sick, tired, grumpy, and just a joy to be around, I assure you. I was tired of my life, tired of having all of these responsibilities, tired of having to take care of my family when I could barely take care of myself. I was a mess. My mom knew this, and she really stepped up. She asked me what she could do, what exactly would help me the most. I didn't really know, so she devised a plan and said that she would come over one day a week and help me with whatever I needed her to do. If it was cleaning, she would clean. If it was cooking, she would cook. If it was organizing, she would organize. And she did that, for about 4 or 5 months until I moved to Virginia. She came over every week and helped me with anything, and everything in between. She brought me dinner so many times or invited us to dinner at her house, that I can't even count that high. She was a lifesaver to me at a time that was crucial. I remember those days with dread, but with such a fondness for my mother and the fiercest feeling of love and appreciation. She truly puts others before herself, and I love her dearly for it. For her selfless, helping hands and heart. Happy Mother's Day to you mom.

 

Now, here is my wonderful mother-in-law. She is one talented lady, and I appreciate so much all of the things she does for me and my family. She is so giving of her time to my children and family. For the past year, she has been giving Laylah sewing lessons once a week. She brings us dinner when I'm sick. She has sleepovers with my kids in the summer. She bakes my kids amazing birthday cakes. She helps my husband see my point of view (haha). She is generous with her time, and I am grateful that I married a man with a wonderful mom. happy Mother's Day to you, Diane!

 

Aren't I lucky? I have so many wonderful things to celebrate on Mother's Day, and that is why I love it so. Being a mother has reminded me to slow down and remember the little things in life. My children have taught me many things, but here are some that I remember most vividly: 

 

From Laylah, I learned to remember to enjoy the small things, like the thrill of getting invited to my first birthday party. When she was just two years old, a girl in our neighborhood invited her to a princess party. I remember her excitement of dressing up, and walking up to that big front door all by herself, and turning around to wave goodbye to me with the biggest grin I've ever seen. She came home full of stories about the fun games that were played, and bursting with happiness from the little goody bag she received. It made my mother heart happy to see her so happy.

 

From Jonah, I learned to relax and take everything in. He was the sweetest, most easy-going toddler I have ever met. He just enjoyed life, and never got upset about anything. Whenever he got into trouble, I could never stay mad at him because of his sweet little smile and sparkling green eyes. The way he followed Laylah around and wanted to copy everything she did made my young mother heart just melt.

 

From Daphne, I learned to remember my love of singing. From the time she could talk, Daphne has loved to sing. She always wanted me to sing her a bedtime song, and around the age of 2, she became obsessed with the Barbie movies. She would sing those songs from the movies day and night. I loved to spy on her and watch her play with her Barbie's and make them dance and twirl and sing. I can still hear her sweet little high-pitched voice, asking me if she could watch Barbie and the Diamond Castle just one more time. Her sweet little voice made my mother heart swell.

 

From Baron, I learned to remember my love of reading. That little boy could read all day long and be perfectly happy. He would bring me a stack of books so high that he could hardly see over the top, set them on the couch, sit up next to them, and pat the couch on his other side and ask me to read him his books. He has most of his favorites memorized and now he "reads" them to Magnus. His love of reading filled my mother heart with pride.

 

From Magnus, I have learned (finally) the art of patience. It's sad to think it has taken me all these years and 5 kids to learn that one, but it's true (and I am still far from mastering the art, but I have greatly improved :). This little caboose of mine gets into any and all kinds of trouble that he possibly can. I am so thankful to finally have a softer voice and a slower to anger mind that reminds me to count to 10 before I do something I will regret. From climbing, disappearing, breaking things, hurting himself, making messes, and getting into any and all dangerous situations, I am thankful that my mother heart has softened and not expected too much of these little beings that are entrusted to me.

 

I love being a mom, and amid all of the exhausting, worrisome, troubling, and just plain hard times that come along with motherhood, I am thankful for all that I have learned. I wouldn't have learned or appreciated these things otherwise, than as I do as seen through the eyes of my child. And although there are things I most definitely will not miss when my kids grow up and are gone (and nothing you say will convince me otherwise....ahem, laundry and messes. I just can't believe I will miss everything when my kids are grown), I will miss the small and simple things. I will miss their big hearts, and quiet wonder. I will miss their easy forgiveness, and their sweet hugs. Yes, there is definitely something amazing about being a mother.

 

Happy Mother's Day to you!