Mother's Day 2014

My feelings regarding Mother's Day are really divided. While I understand that it was created as an idea to honour motherhood, an idea I am completely on board with, it also seems a little silly to need a 'set' day to so. Does it not mean more when someone decides to give thanks to you because they feel particularly full of gratitude that day rather than because that particular day dictated that they do so? 

I feel pretty fortunate that the kids are pretty gracious and thankful all the time so it felt nice to get a few extra special touches on the day of Mother's Day. Besides, the kids were so excited about getting to do a few things to surprise mommy with, even when that meant sequestering me to the bedroom so that they could finish up a few things. 

I guess when Jason asked the kids what they should get me for Mother's Day, the unanimous choice was tulips - there were no other options in their minds. They certainly know my love for tulips! 

And for those smiles!

And for those little hands and their artwork!

And hugs and kisses and cuddles (especially when that ironing board in the background is beckoning for me to finish up so it can go away).

I also got some delicious french toast for breakfast. A treat that I have not had in a very long time! It was lovely.

I love motherhood. And I am grateful to have made the choice to stay home and rear these children. I know some mothers need to make the choice to help support the family financially and go back to work, often sooner than they would have liked, and I believe that their family will be blessed just the same for their sincere hearts and efforts in the realm of motherhood. But I also strongly believe that, whenever possible, mothers are needed to bless their children at home.

But whether we work outside the home or not, we must be actively and consistently loving, teaching and rearing our children. There are so many more faucets to being there for our children than just simply being in the same room as them. Motherhood is full of so much depth, beauty and meaning that can fill us with immeasurable joy, if we let it. I'm always trying to improve myself, particularly as a wife and mother. I feel like I stumble a lot, but it isn't about how much I stumble, it's about how much I get back up, dust myself off and let myself grow in the process. Mother's have an astonishing influence on their children by the example that they set to love themselves and those around them. We don't need to be perfect, we need to be sincerely trying and fully loving. Our children feel our love powerfully when we are giving our hearts in fullness and sincerity. I stumbled on this quote this last week about perfection:

“Would you suppose the Savior [would suggest] a goal that was not possible of attainment and thus mock us in our efforts to live to attain that perfectness? It is impossible for us here in mortality to come to that state of perfection of which the Master spoke, but in this life we lay the foundation on which we will build in the eternity” --- President Harold B Lee

As a mother, I am not only building my foundation but helping to build the foundation of my children. That is a pretty incredible opportunity that God has entrusted me with. I've really enjoyed reading the experiences of the women in this Coming Home Series that you can find over here. It is about mothers, listening to their hearts, and making the choice to be home with their children. Each story is different and I have enjoyed reading the different perspectives and circumstances. I've had more days than I would like to think about, that I have been on the receiving end of hurtful remarks about my choice to stay at home with my children (and, sadly, those remarks have often come from places where I would have expected support) and it just makes me sad to see that people feel the need to do that (and, in some cases, that they do it without even realizing!). However, I have been grateful for the peace and assurance that I have felt through my days that I have made the right choice for me and my family. It is not always easy, but when I let motherhood truly wash over me and embrace it with my whole heart, life feels more right than it ever has.

So, while this post has become much more filled with my opinion than I anticipated it being, I am grateful to be a mother and I am grateful to have two wonderful children who spoiled me with a few extra tokens of love (with help from Daddy) on Mother's Day.

Happy Mother's Day

While Mother's Day is certainly about honoring our partnership with God in raising children, it is also about honoring the many incredible women in our lives. 

I am grateful to be a mother. And I am grateful for all the strong examples of mothers and women that I have been blessed with throughout my life. I hope to emulate them as I strive to improve and grow into the mother that my loving Heavenly Father sees in my.

If you would like to read a great article about honoring the women in your life please visit this link. Enjoy!

Happy Mother's Day!

Is there anyone else out there still trying to form an opinion about Mother's Day? There are people who love it, people who hate it and people who just don't care. I know they all have their reasons, but I did not want their reasons to become my reasons because I want my own opinion (thank you very much!). 

And this year, after one particularly long week, I had decided that I did not want to celebrate Mother's Day at all. No thanks. Not my thing. But that view softened eventually and became a desire to do nothing but soak in these little children of mine who call me 'Mom'. I put in a breakfast request to which Jason happily obliged and put in a stipulation that I must get a picture with just me and the kids (as I am usually the one behind the camera). Other than that, I wanted to let the world pass me by while I crawled all over the living room floor and played games with the kiddos.

Well, Sunday morning greeted me with this handsome guy getting breakfast well underway...

Man, oh man! He sure is handsome!

And this handsome Little Guy so filled with excitement about giving Mommy her gifts that he couldn't sit still or stop smiling.

and a breakfast plate with an incredibly delicious whole wheat vegan crepes filled with all sorts of wonderful vegetables.

And I even got a photo with the kiddos. Actually, I got TWO! 

This one is blurry, but I love it anyway. It just feels so quiet and peaceful, which is sometimes a rarity around here.

And I really love this one as well. It is a little bit more realistic of a snapshot of our life. 

Silly, smiling children. Happy Mommy.

I adore these kids! They are absolutely incredible and impress me each and every day with their ambition to learn and grow.

Before it was time to go, I felt an impression to switch my jewelry. Strange, I know, though I ended up wearing two very special pieces of jewelry; an item from my parents and an item from my grandmother. As odd as this may sound, it really helped to remind me of the mothers that have come before me and helped shape who I am today.
Then it was time to head out the door for morning church. But after such a lovely breakfast I had let my guard down and was not prepared for all the ways the rest of the day would take me away from my vision for the day. 

In the end, by the time church was done, impromptu meetings lasted too long, visits and phonecalls, the day was nearing it's end and the kids were tired and hungry. And I was left feeling like I had missed it all, regretting that I had not protected that time better, and longing to go back to that far-too-brief perfect breakfast.

Now, don't get me wrong, there were other good things in the day. The kids were very well behaved at church. Milayla and Atticus greeted me with smiles larger-than-life when I made it home. Both Jason and I got to call our Moms. We all were able to sit down to dinner together (though it was to the melody of two very tired kids). And, somehow, Jason managed to put together a small batch of cinnamon rolls for us to indulge in.

So, no, the day was not bad. Just not what I had expected and hoped for. Perhaps the day served as more of a reminder at how poorly I adapt to last minute changes than anything else. And considering that it has not even been a week since Mother's Day and the disappointments have nearly faded away and been replaced by the much stronger, happy, memory of wonderful family, good friends and loving mothers, perhaps it was a much better day than I gave it credit for. I am blessed. And I am grateful for such special people in my life that worked so hard to give me a little spoiling. I am grateful for joy in my life that helps smooth out all the bumps in the road and put things into perspective. And I am grateful for the opportunity to rededicate myself to being a Mother as I discover what all that entails for me. And though there are a few things I wish had happened differently, at least I was surrounded by people I love (and I will know better for next year!).

So to everyone, everywhere, I hope you found a way to celebrate Mother's Day that you enjoyed.

Happy Mother's Day!