Happy Mother's Day Mom!

My daughter will call or text me at least twice a week to ask questions she is convinced only I can answer. Questions like, “Is raw chicken still good if it’s been in my fridge for 3 days?” or “What are soda crackers and where do I find them at Walmart?” or “Is it really necessary to dry clean something that says ‘dry clean only’?” Each time she requests expert advice from me, I smile and think about all of the times I have required tutelage from my own mom.

Throughout my twenties, I lived 1,200 miles away from my mother, but it didn’t stop me from making long-distance phone calls to ask her what must have seemed like trivial questions. “What kind of chilies should I put in my homemade salsa?” and “How do you make gravy?” and “When should I start giving my baby cereal?” are just a few of the many questions I had for the ONLY PERSON IN THE WORLD WHO COULD POSSIBLY give me a trusted answer.

Like most mothers and daughters, the relationship between my mom and I has progressed through all stages of life. As a child, I was the first to wake her up on Christmas morning (which was usually waaaay before 6:00 a.m.) and she was the one who ran alongside me as I was learning to ride a bicycle. My mom was kindhearted enough to eat what I called “the yucky chocolate” off the outside of my ice cream bars, so I could enjoy the delicious vanilla ice cream underneath and I was really, really good at asking her if my friends could spend the night or stay for dinner while they were standing right beside me. As a self-centered teenager, I lamented her rules while at the same time benefited from her unwavering support and constant care. It wasn’t until I was married that I realized how much I missed her warm, after-school chocolate chip cookies, daily laundry service and clean toilets.

As my own children grew, my mom was continually there for me. She was by my side as I gave birth to my first child. She taught me how to change his diaper, give him a bath and swaddle him in a blanket.  A couple of years later, she sobbed as I took my two toddlers and moved to another state and, many years after that, she dropped everything and flew to Oregon-twice- to take care of my three youngest children while I moved into the Ronald McDonald House two hours away and watched my oldest son fight for his life in PICU. 

When my family finally moved a little closer to home, mom was quick to deliver food and Popsicles and medicine to my children and me when we all came down with a horrible case of the flu. My mom has taken the grandkids on overnighters and whisked me away for weekend retreats at a spa. She has loaned me money and given me advice and sacrificed so much, all because of the four-letter word- LOVE.

So, on this Mother’s Day, I pause to reflect on one of the greatest blessings in my life- my mother. For the most part, her example has become my habit and her voice has become my own. I look in the mirror and I see her. I open my mouth and my mother comes out. She is my rock and I hope that someday, when my daughter becomes a mom, she will hold the same feelings about me in her heart that I do for my mother. 

I love you mom!

Mother's Day 2015

When it comes to my children, words cannot express the love I feel in my heart! Thank you Katelyn, Casey, Chase and Cody, for allowing me to practice mothering skills on you. Somewhere along the way I must have done something right, because you are responsible, hard working, kind human beings. When I count my blessings, you four are at the top of the list!   :)

My Kids May Be Wacky, but They're Mine

...and I love them to pieces!

God Could Not Be Everywhere and Therefore He Made Mothers ~ Jewish Proverb

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Why Do Women Cry?

I came across the following poem a few months ago. Since Mother's Day is fast approaching, I wanted to share...



Why Do Women Cry?


Why are you crying?" a young boy asked his Mom. 

"Because I'm a woman" she told him.

"I don't understand," he said. 

His Mom just hugged him and said, "And you never will."



Later the little boy asked his father, "Why does mother seem to cry for no reason?"

"All women cry for no reason" was all his dad could say.



The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry.

Finally he put in a call to God; when God answered the phone, the man said,"God, why do women cry so easily?"

God said... 

"When I made woman, I decided she had to be special. 

I made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world; yet gentle enough to give comfort.

I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth and the rejection that many times comes from her children.

I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up and to take care of her family through sickness and fatigue without complaining.

I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances, even when her child has hurt her very badly.

I gave her power to make a child's boo-boo feel better and to quell a teenager's anxieties and fears.

I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults and I fashioned her from his rib to protect her heart. 

I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly. 

I gave her a tear to shed, it's hers exclusively to use whenever it is needed. It's her only weakness."

~Author Unknown

Raising Angels

The similarities between this girl's story and mine are amazing. Please watch the short video. (You may want to grab a tissue.)

"Some people come into our lives, leave footprints on

our hearts and we are never the same."      Flavia Weedn

25 Reasons to Appreciate Your Mother

I received this from a friend of mine and thought I would share with everyone.


25 Reasons to Appreciate Your Mother


1. My mother taught me TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE .

"If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning."


2. My mother taught me RELIGION.

"You better pray that will come out of the carpet."


3. My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL .

"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!"


4. My mother taught me LOGIC.

" Because I said so, that's why."


5. My mother taught me MORE LOGIC.

"If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going to the store with me."


6. My mother taught me FORESIGHT.

"Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident."


7. My mother taught me IRONY

"Keep crying, and I'll give you something to cry about."


8. My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS.

"Shut your mouth and eat your supper."


9. My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM.

"Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!"


10. My mother taught me about STAMINA.

"You'll sit there until all that spinach is gone."


11. My mother taught me about WEATHER.

"This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it."


12. My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY.

"If I told you once, I've told you a million times. Don't exaggerate!"


13. My mother taught me the CIRCLE OF LIFE.

"I brought you into this world, and I can take you out."


14. My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION.

"Stop acting like your father!"


15. My mother taught me about ENVY.

"There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't have wonderful parents like you do."


16. My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION.

"Just wait until we get home."


17. My mother taught me about RECEIVING ..

"You are going to get it when you get home!"


18. My mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE.

"If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way."


19. My mother taught me ESP.

"Put your sweater on, don't you think I know when you are cold?"


20. My mother taught me HUMOR.

"When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."


21. My mother taught me HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT .

"If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."


22. My mother taught me GENETICS.

"You're just like your father."


23. My mother taught me about my ROOTS.

"Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born in a barn?"


24. My mother taught me WISDOM.

"When you get to be my age, you'll understand."


25. And my favorite: My mother taught me about JUSTICE

"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you!"

Musing Over Mother's Days Past

(This one was from Casey. He was obviously into poems.)

Love this part!

By the looks of Casey's name, this had to have been when he was in Kindergarten.

Special little decorative hearts along Katelyn's name.

Cody working on his braille machine...Cute!

I guess I sing too much? haha