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!)