Mother's Day Revisited

I loved Mother's Day BEFORE I actually became a mother. Before I had children of my own, everything about mother's day just sounded so right. I was going to be THAT mom. My children would never have runny noses or dried snot, my children's hair would ALWAYS be brushed and coiffed when they went out, daily hygiene involving tooth brushing, deodorizing, and showering would not be options and not only would my legs always be shaved but I would wear make up....and not wear flamingo pink pajama bottoms outside. I would never yell or lose my temper in Target. I would make sure my children had 3 square meals a day plus healthy snacks, plenty of sunshine and fresh air, and we would have family prayers and scripture reading every single day.

That was BEFORE the children came.

OK, so the B.C. (before children) way of thinking was a little skewed. But at some point Mother's Day started to make me feel guilty. I would hear the talks, listen to the songs, read the cards and I just felt like maybe I was doing something wrong. Motherhood is HARD! I expected to be more graceful at it and not fumble so much. I expected to shower more. I never thought I would wear pajama bottoms to Walmart in the middle of the night. Welcome to reality...but here is what I didn't expect. I wouldn't change this reality for anything in the world.

I have learned so much about myself over the last 12 years. I have learned so much about my Heavenly Father and my Savior and have felt my testimony grow by leaps and bounds. I have learned about faith and miracles that can happen in the middle of discouragement and distress. I have learned that sacrifice really does bring forth the blessings of heaven. I have learned to be more patient and forgiving...both of myself and others. I have learned about divine love and learning to see things from a different perspective and that a bowl of ice-cream and a good night's sleep really do solve most problems. I have learned to be humble and ask others for help. I have learned that my parents really were right most of the time when I was growing up. I have truly never felt greater joy or satisfaction or peace than those sometimes fleeting moments when I look at my children and realize they are mine. Eternally mine. For better or worse, through good times and bad, we are doing this together. And they don't expect me to be perfect. They just expect me to be THERE, to be present...and to keep on trying. 

Heavenly Father could have chosen any mother on the earth through all the generations of time to send these children to...and He chose me. I am humbled often by that thought. He didn't send them to me because I would be perfect...He sent them to me because I had the potential to help each of them reach their potential. I wouldn't have all the answers but I would have the abilityl to find and receive the answers when I needed them. I have something these children need and want. I strive every day to be that person that Heavenly Father knows I can be and I try to remember that this isn't a solo gig. I have divine help and protection and guidance...I just need to ask. 

I am grateful for MY mother! She isn't perfect...but she is perfect for me. And she is the perfect Mo for my children. It really does take a village to raise a child. I am grateful for all the "villagers" who pick up the pieces and fill in the gaps and love and nurture my children in a very special, very important ways. I couldn't do it without them. I am grateful for a mom who made such great decisions and set such a good example in so many different aspects of her life not just personally but also as the mother of our family. She is a remarkable woman who has never shunned the difficult or "impossible" things. Her example has taught me again and again that anything is possible with the Lord at your side. As women and mothers we CAN do hard things. And when are children see us face those challenges and fall and get back up and fall and get back up, we are giving them the courage to see life's possibilities and to never shun the good fight. Thank you Mo for being you!

And last, but certainly not least, I'd like to pay tribute to the many women throughout my life who have been part of the village that helped raise me. We talk about women who may not have children of their own but still have the potential to be powerful mothers and nurturers to others...I can truly, deeply testify of that principle. I have been touched and changed by so many women who had the courage to be instruments in the Lord's hands...whether they knew it or not. Mrs. Wheeler, my third grade teacher who took a little girl who felt very much like an ugly, out of place duckling and made her feel like a princess...a piano teacher in high school who nurtured a talent and had patience with a student who didn't practice like she should but who she knew would find joy and satisfaction throughout her life in this gift...a group of amazing women in Boston, MA who truly exemplified the scripture of the mother hen taking the chicks under her wing and through their love, varied life circumstances, and individual examples, changed my life eternally when I stood at a critical crossroads...I am deeply, humbly, eternally grateful for the influence of righteous women. You will never, ever know the sphere or depth of your influence...just by being you. The Lord uses women to bless and nurture and comfort other women...because we "get" each other...and because the Lord needs us. Saying we are all "mothers" is not a trite phrase...it is a powerful, eternal truth.

And so I sit here in my blue chair tonight and I just feel overwhelmed with gratitude. I am so grateful to be a daughter to my mother...she is still my very favorite person to be with. I am so grateful to be a mother to 4 wonderful children...they are my life and my joy. I love being a sister...and I am so, so grateful for the influence and service of my sisters and sister-in-laws. They are absolutely remarkable in every way! I am so grateful for the privilege of being an aunt...I love adoring my nieces and nephews. I am so grateful to be a friend...I am constantly touched by the lives of those around me. I am so grateful.

Bobble Bunny Heads and Other April Adventures

Today I wrote a check (not a very common occurrence...it was a little weird) and when I went to write the date, I realized I literally had NO IDEA what the date was. I knew it was Monday. I was pretty sure we were still in the month of April...but I didn't know if we were in the middle or at the end. Really. And when the school secretary told me it was APRIL 29th, I had a little anxiety attack. End of April? What happened to the middle of April? Was I awake for the whole thing? So I decided for the sake of making sure I really was present, I would document the event.

There was Easter...or was that in March? It was a wonderful day! Because we have 9:00 a.m. church, I made the kids wait until AFTER church to hunt for their baskets. I actually gave them their first clue after church and the "hunt" had clues that led them to different places between our church building and home. They finally found their baskets hidden by that sneaky bunny all over the yard! (Sidenote: This was the first year that my oldest son found this whole Easter basket hunting a little humiliating. It was a tragically sad moment for me that he is now too cool to appreciate big bunnies delivering baskets. It was bound to happen...next year he gets to write the clues and plan the "hunt"!)

And of course, within minutes of locating their baskets, a Peeps-on-a-stick sword fight ensued! With 3 boys, I really should have seen that coming!

My boys...they make me insanely happy...and sometimes just insane.

ALL my beautiful kids...my daughter also makes me insanely happy! Apparently getting ALL of them to cooperate and smile at the same time is still impossible. 

Darling baby boy + seersucker vest and pants + fedora + saddle shoes = Dreamy!

The boy has developed an intense style all his own over the last year...love it!

So grateful that my one girl is a "fancy" girl!

And my 12 year old...oh my 12 year old! Has learned to  "tie" his own tie and looks fabulous in a suit!

We interrupt this blog broadcast to sing a song. Baby will accompany us.

Later that night, we went to Aunt C. and Uncle J.'s house for a beautiful Easter dinner with family and friends. The food was amazing, the company divine, and the giant Easter Bunny frightening. Just how Easter should be...

Spencer was wildly uncertain about the big, white Easter bunny at the beginning of the night but later on when Hannah put the bobble head on, he couldn't get enough. He kept hugging and kissing it!

Hannah put on the big bunny head and then invited everyone to come "visit" the Easter Bunny and have their picture taken. Spencer was still hugging and kissing the bunny costume...

The moment when we looked over in the yard and had a Sasquatch/Bobble Head Easter Bunny sighting. 

The month of April also brought with it a newly sworn in American citizen! This picture was to document the last time that my brother would kiss his "full French citizen" wife. I hope he doesn't always kiss with his eyes open...

And of course, any good swearing in deserves a party afterwards. And any good party always ends with the whipped cream just being sprayed directly into your mouth...although I love that my nephew is about to get busted by his Mo standing in the background!

Let's see...what else did we do in April?

There was the night we went out to visit our wonderful friends and their new farm. Baby boy was in HEAVEN chasing goats and terrorizing baby chicks and Hannah lived every one of her "my little pony" dreams when she got to help take care of the horses. It made me feel so sorry for my poor city slicker kids and the fact that they will NEVER own goats or chicks or ponies. (Although once I pointed out to Hannah what pony poop looked like she backed down on wanting one a little bit!)

 There was the day during spring break that I took Hannah and Baby to the zoo and took exactly one darling picture before the batteries in my camera died.

 Or the day I looked in the backyard and witnessed my 10 year old trying to break every bone in his body. But he assured me he was just practicing his "bicycle" kick for soccer and that I didn't need to worry since he was professional. I patiently explained that David Beckham and Pele were professionals...he was a 10 year old boy who was going to get in big trouble if he broke anything...and then I went to get the camera to document the time when he didn't have broken bones.

And then there is EVERY day when Baby looks longingly out the big window at the trampoline and waits patiently for someone to take him out and bounce him like crazy and make him laugh his little guts out. 

Hannah wrote a stunning illustrated narrative for school on the ant. This was one of my favorite pages. It says, "After the males mate with the queen...They Die!" And that is a dead ant with a certain stench attracting flies. Nothing but quality stuff coming out of this house!

 Matthew and Hannah both participated in a HUGE production put on by lots and lots of schools in Utah called "Hope of America". They performed with their classes in the Marriott Center on BYU campus. Feast your eyes  on my 10 year old boy dressed as a Scottish dancer about to do the jig...

 Despite the instance that this was the most embarrassing, uncool thing he had ever been asked to do, he looked like he was having a pretty good time during the event!

 Hannah's class were Japanese dancers. She was stunning with her kimono and fan. I hope we made Sho, Hero, & Spencer proud!

Jacob and Hannah also performed in their school's annual production. This year they did a stage adaptation of Dr. Seuss' "If I Ran the Circus". Jacob played Mr. Sneelock and Hannah was a clown.

 Jacob in his Oscar award winning performance...sleeping and sneering. 

 We will be eternally grateful to our fans that always come out to support our local grass roots performances. 

 And I will never fail to be charmed by darling boys in matching sweaters.

 April marks the beginning of Matthew's eternal "warm" weather grass stained knees. Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, plays harder than this child does every single day!

 Spencer adoring the neighbor's dog. I like the dog's very noble, stoic look as he lets the toddler yank and pull on him. We are so grateful Sugar!

 These 2 pictures show the daily occurrence of having a toddler in the house again. He can unroll toliet paper rolls in a flash, unload and climb into the tupperware drawer faster than I can brush my teeth, climb on the printer, shimmy up his high chair, climb down the stairs to the laundry room, and throw a bucket full of toys around a room like a real champion.

Luckily we have the giant box/play pen when things get too out of hand. Here he is playing with his toddler iPad...I'm not kidding...it is hilarious!

My goodness...I'm exhausted just thinking about April. Did I get everything? At least the parts I was awake for?

I think we did it! Thank you for relieving the April highlights with me. We now return you to your regular scheduled programming.