Symbol of Sibling Love

This appears to be a simple toy sea turtle, and not an especially attractive one. In our family it is a symbol of sibling love and sacrifice. This is a picture of the turtle that Braden got Emma for her birthday, the turtle he hid in his room for months in anticipation of the day he could bestow his carefully selected gift, the turtle he moved from hiding place to hiding place for fear that Emma would find it and ruin the surprise, and the turtle which he used his hard earned money to buy, the money he used not on himself but his sister; that is what makes this a gift of sacrifice, a symbol of sibling love.

Pictures of my sweet and adorable one year old

Motherhood Reflections

Today I have been reflecting on what it means to be a mother and what an incredible role I play every single day. My reflecting began as I listened to the song "Somebody's Hero" by Jamie O'Neal, and following that song I listened to "You're Gonna Miss This" by Trace Adkins. It is crazy how different things affect you and cause you to really start thinking. After listening to both songs, I really started looking at my children. I started thinking about how precious every moment I get to spend with them is; I thought about how much I am going to miss this time in their lives. Every day is slipping through my fingers, do I really want to spend that time I have with them worrying about things as insignificant as having an immaculate house when it means I would miss precious moments with my children? Do I want to stress about things that rob me of happy times? As I pondered these things and looked at my sweet children's faces, it hit me that this is where I find my true happiness in life. Often the world creeps in and makes me think that what I am doing is not as noble and sacred as it really is; the world constantly bombards us with advice and criticism for a woman's decision to be not only a mother but a homemaker.

You will lose yourself if you spend your whole life giving to others.

It is a waste of a good mind and life for a woman to stay at home and be a mother.

How can anyone truly feel fulfilled being a mom and a homemaker?

How does doing dishes and washing clothes make a difference?

You need to live your own life, be who you are, and don’t let children hold you back.

You must have an important title and make money to be of worth.

In this world and the next Motherhood is one of the most important titles we as women can have. Women of the world may touch hundreds of lives, perhaps even thousands, but a mother touches countless lives. A mother’s influence can be felt not only in this life but throughout the eternities. I think that is much more important than projects we complete or awards we win.

Upon more reflection, I began to ask myself more questions. When I look back on my life, what will I remember? What will anyone remember about their own life? Will anyone remember or care if you were a size 6 or a size 16? Will anyone remember what degree you did or didn’t have? Will anyone remember what you were voted most likely to be in high school? Will anyone remember what kind of car you drove or what kind of house you lived in? Will anyone remember how many awards you won or how much money you did or didn’t make? Will anyone remember your wrinkles, your extra few pounds of baby weight, or your mommy stained clothes? The answer is a resounding NO!

They however will remember the love you gave. Every day of motherhood is a lesson in sacrifice, patience, and love. As a mother you work a lifetime giving to those you love, but when you are old and in your twilight years, you will see the fruits of your hard work. You may not be surrounded by exquisite furniture or a grand collection of belongings, but you will be surrounded by the people that have been touched by your love. When your hair is white with age, your body burdened with years of wear, your soul filled with wisdom, and your heart filled with love, you will know that your life was one of nobility. You will know that you gave all that you had to those most important, your family.

As I continued to reflect and think about my twilight years, I began to think about what I would remember one day as I looked at my grown children, their spouses, and their children. I realized I wouldn't remember how much we did or didn't have or sacrifices we had to make to have a family. I realized I would remember:

sweet baby cheeks

little hands wrapped around my fingers

singing in the car

dancing with abandon in the kitchen

showering my children with kisses

slobbery baby kisses

first words spoken

kissing boo boos

cooking with my children by my side

books read

looks of pride on my children's faces as they overcame an obstacle

the feeling of sweet arms wrapped around my neck

the sound of laughter filling my house and my heart

all nighters with sick children

the first time I heard each of my children cry

the joy I felt each time I found out I was pregnant

the beauty of my children's smiles

Maseda Movie Madness nights

splashing in the pool with my children

the pride and sadness I felt the first time Braden went to school

hearing "I love you the most Mama!"

singing lullabies to my children

teaching my children the scriptures and watching their testimonies grow

listening to Braden tell me how much he loves Jesus and how much he misses him

hearing Brooke say a prayer to Heavenly Father

watching Emma tackle her brother

watching them see who can get to their daddy first when he gets home from work

the constant talking at the dinner table

and all of the memories we have yet to make.

As I relived some of these memories in my mind and continued to contemplate about my twilight years, I came to the realization that I want to do all I can to live my life now. I want to savor every single minute I have with my children. I want to worry less and enjoy more. I want to stop and listen to Brooke's barrage of questions of why things are the way they are, I want to stop and take the time to cuddle and read to Braden, and I want to stop and get on the floor and play with Emma.

I've decided that my whole life has prepared me to be a mother, and I know this is the greatest mission I am to fulfill on this earth. Heavenly Father has prepared me for this sacred and noble calling, and I am not going to let him, my children, or my husband down. I truly do love my life, and all of the chaos is worth it if it means my children feel loved and cherished! We may not always have all the world thinks we should have: the latest fashion, the latest toy, or the newest car, but we will have each other, and we will have love; I couldn't imagine anything more! I know that what we as a family have is what is most important, and I know that being a mother is helping mold me into something I could have never become on my own. My children have taught me unconditional love, patience, sacrifice, and strength beyond what I thought I had; they are an example to me, and as I serve them I grow.

As a child, I always hoped and dreamed I would get to be a mother, I am so very grateful that my dream came true!

My Attempt at Easter Pictures

Here is my attempt at Easter Pictures; Braden, Brooke, and Emma looked so adorable all decked out, so I wanted to capture the day on film. I guess you don't always get what you want, because they were not cooperative; they made goofy faces, mean faces, and occasionally smiled and looked at the camera, but never all at the same time. I had wanted to get pictures before church, but there was simply no time; in fact I slipped into the pew with my sweet hoodlums one minute before everything began, good considering we all woke up late, hence the unsuccessful after church photo session.

I did take some sweet pictures of Emma by herself, but I will post them later. I guess it wasn't a total wash. Okay, okay there were some cute pictures mixed in there, especially the sweet pictures of Braden and Emma; she sure adores her older brother. I couldn't get her to stop looking at him to look at the camera.

Getting Ready for Emma's birthday

These are pictures of Braden helping me get ready for Emma's birthday; Saturday night he helped me season the hamburger meat, and Sunday he helped me by scraping the cream or creme ? off the oreos and then chopping them up in our mini food chopper. (If you notice he is wearing the same shirt; he LOVES his Spiderman tank top, as you can tell.) He also helped to color the toothpicks green and handed me the gumdrops for tulip creation. Braden is such a sweet child; he is so giving, and he is always thinking of things to do for other people or coming into the kitchen and saying, "Mama, can I help you?" He likes being in the kitchen so much helping me cook, that I started mini cooking lessons. Earlier this week I taught him how to make scrambled eggs, and Saturday we reviewed the fine art of seasoning hamburger meat to make a juicy and delicious hamburger, both lessons taught to me as a child by my daddy. I don't think he is quite ready to learn the fine art of creating the perfect batch of Spaghetti a la Daddy, but he will get there. In the meantime, we will continue to have that special time cooking, teaching, learning, talking, and making memories; Braden's giving nature is a great example for everyone around him, including his family!

Seasoning the Hamburger Meat

Helping get the "dirt" ready for Emma's garden cake

Emma's first birthday

Yesterday our sweet, adorable, beautiful Emma turned 1! Can you believe it has been a year already?! Time goes by WAY too fast! Luckily, I take more pictures than I can count; I will have to look back at those when my little baby isn't a baby anymore. Today to celebrate we had a mini party, us and one other family. Since her birthday fell on Sunday, and our life has been a little too crazy to have a party earlier, we thought it needed to be a very small and intimate affair. I don't think I would have felt quite right having a big shindig on a Sunday. I just hope everyone will understand, because I would have loved to invite the whole world to help us celebrate, especially since Emma loves attention, but we decided that it would be better to just have us and one other family. So, we and the Bells helped to ring in Emma's birthday and a new year for her of possibilities: walking, talking, and toddlerhood. We ate hamburgers, ranch potatoes, pasta salad, fruit, drank Berry Delicious Lemonade, watched Emma devour her cake, and opened presents. I think it was nice: small, sweet, and special, perfect for our special little girl!

Following in Her Big Sister's Footsteps

This a picture I took of Emma today; it looks like we might have two little prisses on our hands. I guess she is just following in her big sister's footsteps.

Time with my Princess

This afternoon Rich took Braden to play golf for some special father son time, so Brooke and I had some girlie time. I let her pick what she wanted to do, so she decided she wanted a manicure, a pedicure, and to have her hair washed, dried, and fixed; she is ALL GIRL!!!!! It was really nice spending that one on one time with her: talking, listening, and making memories, and most of the time it was just us; Emma slept through the manicure and pedicure but woke up in time for the beauty shop portion of the afternoon. I am so glad that Rich and I make sure to make time for the cuties, because it makes them feel so special. Braden was all smiles when he got home; he in fact burst through the door exclaiming, "I hit the ball really far Mama!" Rich, a few steps behind, also sang Braden's praises; Braden was beaming from ear to ear as Rich went on and on about how well Braden did. Brooke of course then had to fill everyone in on her time with Mama, complete of course with a play by play of every moment; Brooke's day though was not really complete until we adjourned to the backyard to take pictures of our little beauty. Here are just a few of Princess Brooke.

(For those asking, What about Emma? Don't worry, she gets plenty of one on one time; we would never forget about our sweet Emma!)

Easter Party

Here are some pictures from Braden's school Easter party last week. Luckily, my neighbor's daughter is in Braden's class, and she had the party at her house; it was so nice getting to walk just a few houses down instead of having to load the whole gang up in the van. It was a FANTASTIC party and the kids had a BLAST!

The agenda was as follows:

• Easter Egg Hunt in the woods
• Listen to Easter Story (gotta love a church preschool, learning about Jesus is a part of the curriculum :) )
• Eat Grilled Hot Dogs, Chips, Fruit, and various other goodies
• Play on Hannah's swings and slide
• Attempt (and I do mean attempt) to have the kids do a egg in spoon relay
• Go home and see how much candy you can devour in one hour or before Mama says stop (each egg had candy inside of it)

I can't say how much I love getting to go to these parties. I love that Braden and Brooke (and Emma; the kids in Braden's class LOOOOOOOOVVVVVE her) get the opportunity to socialize with other children. As Braden makes more friends, he feels more of a part of everything, and that helps his confidence grow. Preschool for Braden has really helped him in so many ways. I love watching him go out on his own; I love to see that he also is becoming more assertive, not aggressive, just assertive.

Paul and Amanda's Wedding

Well, it is official; Paul and Amanda got married for time and all eternity this past Saturday, March 15, 2008. Today at lunch, I thought I would ask Braden and Brooke what their favorite parts of the wedding festivities and weekend were; these are their responses:

Braden: "I liked the chocolate fountain." (at the reception)

Brooke: "Dancing and grooving." (Yes, she said grooving; I don't know where she comes up with these things!)

My favorite parts of the weekend were as follows (in no particular order):

• getting to see and spend time with my family
• watching my little brother get married for time and all eternity
• enjoying the sweet spirit in the temple
• having a whole weekend to socialize
• getting to spend time with my sister
• not having to share Rich for two whole days
• talking with and seeing people that have had an integral part of molding me into who I am (Primary teachers, YW leaders, and close family friends)
• being surrounded by those that I hold near and dear to my heart; it may be months or years in between getting to see them, but when we do see each other again, it is like no time has passed
• the shrimp at the reception
• listening to people go on and on about how cute Braden, Brooke, and Emma are and what a good job Rich and I are doing; the career of motherhood doesn't always include a lot of pats on the back, so you love any that you receive
• the fact that it is all over; I am glad that Paul and Amanda are now happily married and on their honeymoon, which means the wedding stress is officially over for everybody! :)

Sweet VICTORY~ well, almost

In the Maseda household, as I am sure is the case in many households, Sunday means naps for one and all. Of course now that Rich is the bishop, I didn't know if I would be able to work a mighty miracle and secure a nap for myself; my mission was to get home, feed the cuties, and put everyone to sleep, and so began the race. I got home, fed Emma, got Brooke and Braden's lunch ready, heated up something for myself, Emma fell asleep in her high chair (YES!!), we prayed, and commenced eating and talking about what we learned at church; Brooke however said she wasn't hungry and wanted to go lie down in my bed (should have been a HUGE clue that something was up, but I just kept thinking, 'NAP, HERE I COME, two down, and one more to go). While Brooke drifted off to dreamland, I put Emma in her crib, and then returned to the table to finish eating my lunch and talk to Braden. I then put Braden in his bed, covered him up, sang him a song, got him a few books (for those who don't know, Braden LOVES to look at books before he goes to sleep), and told him to have sweet dreams. SWEET VICTORY!!!!!! I rushed to my room to take out my contacts and to slip into some Betty Boop pajama bottoms and a deliciously comfy t-shirt; I then set my alarm, wriggled my way under my covers, and got ready for sleep to come, but then I heard, the door, Rich was home. So up I got; I thought, 'I should probably go help Rich find the leftover pork chops in the fridge and talk to him for a few minutes before he has to leave again'. I decided that he was worth leaving my sleep sanctuary, at least for a few minutes. He and I sat for a while, talked, reconnected, and laughed at some of the funny things the cuties had said today. As we were getting ready to say our farewells, I hear a cough, or what I thought was a cough; 'Oh no! Is one of the kids awake?! Please say it isn't true! I guess I will have to go check.' So, I walk despairingly back to the bedrooms to discover that yes, one of the children is up, and to my horror I quickly realize that not only has Brooke woken up, but she has thrown up all over herself, my sheets, the pillow, and my beautiful bedspread. Oh, my sweet victory is gone, the realization rushes over me like a tidal wave,

'There will be no nap for Mama today!'

So begins the clean up: Brooke, her clothes, the linens, and the mattress. Oh, the sickness that continues to plague our family, first the flu: me, Rich, Braden, and then the girls, and now the stomach bug: Emma, me, and now Brooke, who will be next?! Will the germs never end? Will we never be well again? Oh to have a healthy family again!

Tomorrow morning,

OPERATION DISINFECT BEGINS!!!!!!!!!!!

From toilets, to sinks, to floors,

WATCH OUT GERMS,

MAMA MASEDA IS COMING TO GET YOU!!!!!!

You can run, but you

CAN'T HIDE!!!!!!!!!

Never a Dull Moment

This is what Rich and I were greeted with last night as we crawled into bed. Instead of Goldilocks stealing our bed, it was Braden's African American Ken doll; I guess Braden decided he needed rest more than we did. You have to admit children are constant entertainment!

I'm So Proud of Myself

Braden is becoming sooooooo independent, and he loves trying to do everything by himself. A few minutes ago he poured himself a glass of apple juice, then he came to me and said, "Mama, I am so proud of myself." I am too buddy, moments like that make me want to put my arms around Braden and kiss his sweet little dimples.

I sure LOVE that boy of mine!

My Little Teether

Isn't my little teether just adorable?! Check out those pearly whites of hers; she has two teeth coming through, and two hanging out just below the surface. Watch out siblings, here comes

Mini Jaws!

One of these things is not like the other

WAIT A SECOND!

They are alike, just alike. Yes, Braden is sporting two right shoes. We bought these at Wal-mart a few days ago for $3; there was no tag or any other shoes like these, so they said we could have them for $3. I didn't really pay attention to the shoes, obviously; we only tried one shoe on Braden and called it good. When I got home however I noticed the mistake. For those who don't know, Braden LOVES penny loafers, and so he was very distraught when he outgrew his last pair. In fact, Braden actually continued to try to wear his other ones, though they were waaaaaay too small; when he finally starting getting blisters, he stopped. Just to make sure he wouldn't inflict more pain on his poor feet, trying to get a few more wears out of his precious penny loafers, Rich and I hid them in the attic. We had tried to hide them before, but somehow the little bloodhound always found them; the attic was our last resort. Back to the story, Braden and I were in Wal-mart a couple days ago looking for black dress shoes for him to wear to his Uncle Paul's wedding when he spotted them. I attempted to show other shoes to Braden, but he only had eyes for those black, beautiful penny loafers. So we put them in our cart and headed to the front of the store (after a short visit at the toys, of course). It was the last pair they had, so they decided $3 would be a fair price. I of course am thinking, 'SCORE', little did I know how wrong I was. Anyway we head home, Braden holding his new prized possessions in his lap the whole way, and unload all of the groceries. Braden, understandably, has no time to help; he must get inside and try on his new shoes. After putting on his shoes, Braden always has me do the check, "Are these on the right feet?" So I look, first at the right foot, "Yes, that is right.", and then the left. Right, left, right, left, "Wait a second, something doesn't look right here!" Then it dawns on me; we came home with two right shoes. Boy do I feel foolish; well, they are just going to HAVE to go back, or are they?! I'm thinking, '$3, I can buy some groceries with $3; I'm not keeping shoes he can't even wear!' The sad thing is, he has worn them, every day since we brought them home. I tried to make him see reason, explained that they are two right shoes, and posed the question, "Doesn't that hurt your feet?" I've told him, "We simply can't keep those, you need a right shoe and left shoe." Braden however looks at me unfazed, "I like these shoes Mama; I want to keep them." I of course am also unfazed, "That is nice son, but they are going back to Wal-mart." Then Rich pipes in, "They were ONLY $3." Okay, I guess he can keep them, but don't expect me to let him outside of our house with those things on; I support my children's free expression (believe me, you should see some of the outfits I let them go out in public with: mismatched, inside out and backwards shirts, cowboy boots with shorts, and occasionally backwards pants), but letting your child go out with two right shoes would not bode well for my reputation as a mother. It is one thing to let your child dress themselves and deal with the consequence, it is quite another for others to question your I.Q. when they see that your child has on two right shoes. So, YES, Braden can keep the shoes, but DO NOT expect to see him wearing them out and about, cowboy boots with shorts, YES, but two right shoes,

NO!

My First Grilling Experience

Yes, it is true, I grilled for the first time last night. I know some of you are scratching your heads in wonder, but it is true; in all of my 32 years I had never grilled before. In the south, women typically do not grill; we pound, we season, we marinate, and then we say, "Sugah, the meat is ready for ya; do ya wanna throw it on the grill for me?" The man then replies, "Sure honey", and then watches as the sweet southern girl sashays away, making sure to put a little extra swish in her walk just for her big grilling man. And so had been the case in the Maseda house, that is, until last night. I decided that with Rich's new calling, I needed to acquire new skills and talents, and the first thing I wanted to conquer was the grill. For those that don't know, I am not very fond of gas or fire. In high school, if I could help it, I would have my lab partner get our Bunsen burner started; I was scared I would set the entire classroom on fire. I still remember a time in 9th grade where I had to make up a lab in which we had to put glass in fire, heat it, and make it bend. I was terrified! I thought, 'That teacher must be mad!' 'Does he know what he is asking?!' Luckily he did ask a boy in the class to assist me, so I did what any other Southern Belle would have done, I turned on the charm and let him deal with the fire. Well NO MORE, I knew I had to conquer my fear, so with Rich standing close by, I turned on the gas and fired that sucker up. What did I cook you ask? I cooked Bistro Chicken Pizza; that's right, I pulled out all the stops! You know what they say, cook BIG or go home; okay, only I say that. Well, after finishing making the pizza, I whipped up a salad and some Berry Delicious Lemonade to round out the meal, and to celebrate the joyous occasion, we ate outside. I came, I conquered, and I had Rich show me how to turn the gas off; I don't think I am quite ready to grill without Rich being within a hundred yard radius, but I am getting there.

Before grilling and adding the ingredients it looked like this.

After all of the hard work, it looked like this.

My family ready to eat, and ready for me to put the camera AWAY!

And for those that may want to recreate this delicious pizza at home, here is the recipe.

Bistro Grilled Chicken Pizza

1 (13.8-ounce) can refrigerated pizza crust dough
1 teaspoon olive oil
3/4 cup pizza sauce
4 plum tomatoes, sliced
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 (4-ounce) package tomato-and-basil feta cheese
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Unroll dough, and place on a lightly greased 18- x 12-inch sheet of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Starting at center, press out dough with hands to form a 13- x 9-inch rectangle. Brush dough evenly with olive oil.
Invert dough onto grill cooking grate; peel off foil. Grill, covered with grill lid, over medium heat (300° to 350°) 2 to 3 minutes or until bottom of dough is golden brown. Turn dough over, and grill, covered with grill lid, 1 to 2 minutes or until bottom is set. Carefully remove crust from grill to an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet.

Microwave pizza sauce in a small glass bowl at HIGH 30 seconds or until warm, stirring once. Spread sauce evenly over crust; top with tomatoes and chicken. Sprinkle evenly with cheeses and basil. Return pizza to cooking grate (pizza should slide easily). Grill, covered with grill lid, 3 to 5 more minutes or until crust is done and cheese is melted.

*I used a grill pan (I guess that is what you call it?) to put the crust on the grill; it just didn't make sense to me to put it directly on the grill, but remember, I am a grill newbie. I still have a LOT to learn about the fine art of grilling.

I guess I should also point out that there may be some southern women that do in fact love to grill, but generally Southern Belles leave the grilling to the men; I of course have decided to break with tradition, but I guess it won't be the first time. I also am a Southern girl who doesn't eat grits, well, unless those grits are mixed with cheese and shrimp, mmmmmmmmm, delicious!!!!!!!!!

Keeping the Home Fires Burning

Well, Rich received a new calling on Sunday; Rich is now the new bishop of our ward. Yes, you read correctly, bishop. I know, Congratulations and Condolences; I got a lot of that on Sunday. I guess it would be more accurate to say we have a new calling; when we met with the Stake President Friday night, he talked to us about how this is a family calling. He talked of how this calling would require a lot of sacrifice, for Rich, the children, and me, but he also talked about how Heavenly Father needed and wanted Rich to serve. He talked of how we would grow as individuals and as a family; he told us that we would grow in ways we can't imagine now. As President Lowther read the letter from the First Presidency stating that they felt that Rich was to serve in this capacity, it hit me that life as I knew it was about to change. It is accurate to say that I have been filled with a number of emotions over the last few days, immense love for my husband, apprehension of the new roles I am going have to play (mainly feeling like a single parent on many occasions), wonder and awe at how Heavenly Father truly does know each of us and loves us tenderly, heaven sent strength (seriously, I have been patient when usually I would have wanted to run for the hills), and a renewed dedication to my husband, my children, and my role as a mother. With these feelings have also come questions: How can I support my husband? How do I comfort him when he is overwhelmed with the ward's problems? What is the best way to make sure we squeeze in family time amongst his many obligations? How do I make sure my children understand that their daddy is still their daddy? How do I fight for our family time without getting in the way of what is most important, serving Heavenly Father? How do I deal with those that may criticize my husband and us? How do I make the most of this opportunity/trial (I think both words are appropriate)? I know over time I will find the answers to these questions. What I do know now is that I stand behind my husband 100%. I know that he is the one who is supposed to be the bishop right now, and I know it is my job to love and support him. I know that prayer and scripture study are going to be my lifelines to strength, sanity, love, and patience. I know that there are going to be countless nights Rich will come home stressed, and all I will be able to do is wrap my arms around him, and let him know I will always be there for him. I know that I need to be Rich's cheerleader now. I know that it is going to be difficult feeling in the dark about many things in his life; Rich and I have always shared everything, but now there are going to be sooooo many things that he can not share and that I do not need to know. I know that Heavenly Father is already giving me strength and patience beyond my usual capacity, and I know we as a family are being blessed and protected. I also know that my children need me even more now. I can not explain the renewed spirit I have felt towards motherhood in the last few days. I feel that my most important jobs right now are to love my husband and love my children. With all the questions, concerns, and the unknown, I do know that it is my job, my duty, and my honor right now to

'Keep the Home Fires Burning!'

These are the flowers Rich brought home to me Saturday night. I had asked him to go to Wal-mart to pick up a few things we needed, and he also came home with these. He explained it this way, "I have to make sure your love tank is nice and full, before all of this craziness begins." I don't think we have any idea how crazy and demanding life is going to get, but I do know that it is vital that I am ever vigilant, looking for the smallest opportunities to spend time together as a couple and a family.