Moms day ... every day

With Mothers Day this past weekend, I have been thinking a lot about mothering .... the mothers I know, my mom and especially being a mom. The ups and downs, the joys and challenges. The sweetness and innocence, the growing and exploring ...
Time goes by so fast ... its amazing how quickly the kiddos are growing and changing. I love every stage and what it brings. Yet my heart longs for when they were babes. I want to truly know each of my children, their hearts. And although they will only be my babes for a short period of time I pray for loving life long relationships.
I have always and will always admire my mom. She is the ultimate mom. She is always there for her children and always put us first. She would always sacrifice herself for us. I didn't see that as a kid but I do now. Her patience, her gentleness, is like no other. I am not her (exactly) but I do hope that I can share some of her qualities and give my kiddos what she has given me.As I'm sure all moms would say, my kiddos are my world. Sometimes being a mom seems so natural and peaceful. At other moments, it can simply be frustrating and I feel like I haven't got a clue. I am in awe of the "job" that God has blessed me with. I have never felt fully qualified but I believe we learn each and every day.
Some of the words that come to mind when I think of being a mom ...
loving
comforting
nurturing
gentle
patient
graceful
I strive daily ....

Life as a mom ...
teacher
chauffeur
chef
play mate
all time offense
queen of the tea party
basketball coach
friend, mom, baby, customer (in whatever imaginary game is going on)

Life with kiddos ...
little hand prints
foot prints
trails of dress up
meals of pretend food
baseball, footballs, basketballs .... everywhere
gold fish
princess movies
more gold fish
forts
nerf dart gun wars

Motherhood ... precious

Mothers Day brought me dirt! And starters of our garden. The kids took me to a local nursery to pick out what we needed. After we all picked out some fruits and vegetables we spent the rest of the afternoon planting. I love having them help with the garden so they can watch their own hard work pay off with a harvest. They enjoy it too, especially digging in the dirt!
But that was not my only treat. The kiddos also took me out for ice cream. We went to a local ice cream parlor and I got to have my favorite, as did they. However, Bub took it one step farther by ordering a sundae. A big sundae. I thought it was too much of a good thing but he knew he could eat it. He did eat it .... but his eyes were definitely bigger than his tummy. Within moments of walking out, he threw up! And not just once, twice!!!The first words out of his mouth were "I think you were right!"

We ended our day with a bbq with my parents. Lots of good food and a lot of laughs. We also worked on a family project that Bub had to complete for school. The project was to make a covered wagon, so that's what we did. We really had a good time coming up with ideas. And since this project was done at grandma and grandpas house, they jumped in too. We all contributed (even Pie). I love projects like that. Was it the best wagon turned in? .... perhaps not. But it was our best wagon and we enjoyed the time. What fun ....