Mother's Day 2010

Teaching my son the right way to go--Yankees from the start!

Mother's Day is a day when I have the chance to really be grateful for the amazing opportunity that I have to be a mom. I really cannot think of anything else that I would rather do. When I look at Matthew, I can't imagine loving anyone more than I love this little child in his pure innocence (usually!) and pure love. The other day when I was pushing Matthew in the stroller, he just looked up at me and smiled. My heart at that moment was so happy! It was such a simple sweet moment, but one I think I'll remember forever. It was as if he "just had to check" on me. I started to fake cry and "act sad" (hand on face) a few days ago because Matthew didn't bring me something that I asked him for and he came quickly over to me and talked to me and hugged me. He always looks after me and makes sure I am around (again, usually!) and will ALWAYS check on me if Ammon is even in the least acting mean or hostile toward me (even if it's a simple hug, Matthew has to make sure I'm okay).

Motherhood is so precious and I know there are a million things I could be doing. I found a list of all the things I thought I'd be doing by now and marriage and motherhood were not on the list. Things like traveling the world, a Masters' degree, a resume that included major newspapers and many employers including living experiences in NYC and another country were all on the list. Marriage happened earlier than I thought it would. Parenthood happened especially earlier than I thought it would. But, I can't imagine it any other way. How glad I am that I did it in the right order, got married in the temple, and then had a little baby that Heavenly Father trusted me with. I'm still wondering how ever I will add up to the potential Matthew deserves or the great potential Heavenly Father sees in me, but I also know that through the spirit and the great examples and knowledge I have of the gospel ahead of me, it can be done!

Being a mom is really the most amazing thing I could have asked for and when the times are tough and I get down on my "uneventful" life, I just have to look at Matthew and all those negative thoughts are gone! I have truly learned how Satan really tries to make motherhood, womanhood and the family seem bad and not like they are the right thing to do! How great it is to know that we have the knowledge from our Heavenly Father that this is the right path for us!

I couldn't think of the type of mother I'd be if I didn't have the most amazing mom that I did. I can't think of a better example of charity, love, patience, humility, obedience, beauty, leadership and friendship. As I've grown there are times when I really think what a little brat I must've been growing up. I can think of times when I was a teenager and how disrespectful I must've been. Never did my mom (or dad) ever stop loving me. They have taught me the way to go since I was a baby. I have had 24 years experience in the gospel. Not a lot, but I have been taught for 24 years to go to church. I've been taught how to be a good mom, how to follow the spirit, how to be obedient, how to repent and gain an appreciation for the Atonement. I have learned how to be a good mom by following my mom's example. Matthew will never have it as good as I or my siblings did, but the joy of that is...he will! My mom is the BEST grandmother I will ever know! She is so sweet and loving and fun and can I say, obsessed, with Matthew. She takes such good care of him and I never have to think twice if I can leave him with her and what she might be teaching my son. She is respectful of the way I want him raised, the way the Lord would have him raised and is so great to him. The boy is crazy about his grandparents, and Ammon says that Matthew loves them more than he loves Ammon (not true, but on some days, grandparents can do that to a kid!). I love my mom and hope that I can be best friends with my daughter one day like she is to me. I think I have more in common with my mom than any other person on the planet. HOW HAPPY THAT MAKES ME! What a good person to look up to! One day, I hope my children will be able to love me half as much as I love my mom.

Ammon's mom is so strong. I look at the things that went on in her and Ammon's past and I can't think about how I would be able to handle it. I mean, come on. She had a 15-month-old when her second was born and then her third came when Ammon was barely two and less than one year after her second. It takes a strong woman to be able to handle that! She always was there for Ammon growing up and loved him no matter what. She was supportive of his choices to go to church, when he joined the military, went on a mission....she has been such a good mother to Ammon. WOW! How much we don't really think about the people that matter most. Moya didn't have a lot of support when she came to America, and didn't have any family after her divorce, and she was still able to pull through. She's been through a lot and I think I will be forever grateful for the son she raised and the strength she has taught me.

How wonderful it is to know of the great examples we learn about in the scriptures and what kind of mothers they must have been. Mary was found righteous and virtuous enough to raise the only begotten Son of God! Rebekah, Eve, Rachel, Sariah, Mary Fielding Smith, Emma Smith and the unknown named ones like the wife of Mormon or the mothers of the 2000 Stripling Warriors! What about women like Marjorie Hinckley, or Ada Bitner Hinckley? What about Lucy Mack Smith? All great examples of how to be a great mother. I just read a book about these women in the Book of Mormon and it was so wonderful I want to read it again. There is never enough advice, never enough good words or never enough examples of good motherhood to look to. I am so grateful for these women and their wonderful sons they raised so that we can have the gospel we have today.

I don't think I could go without expressing gratitude for my big sister! WOW if there is anyone that I get more help from, it'd be hard to name them. We have so much fun doing everything together. We take the kids everywhere and we have so much fun raising them since they're so close in age. I have learned so much from her and the great example of what a great mother is. She is so patient and kind and she seems to have everything under control all the time. I don't know how she does it. I learn how to be a better mom by watching her and I am so glad that I was blessed with the best sister anyone could ask for (which all goes back to my mom and the children she was able to raise)! I love her and can't wait for our adventures in the future!

Gina. I don't get to see her or Amelia or Shaun as much or as often as we'd all like, but I have learned a lot from Gina too. What kind of special mother does it take to raise Amelia?! Heavenly Father must've trusted Gina above so many others because He knew that she'd be able to raise Amelia in the ways of the Lord. She is patient with Amelia, is so good at teaching her ways to learn and is always with her, 24/7. She stays at home to care for Amelia, just as Sloan and my mom were able to do as well, and I learn just how much a woman is capable of because of Gina!

While we were in San Diego, my mom made this sweet frame of Matthew's hand print for me for Mother's Day. I almost cried thinking how big he is getting and how sweet it was that he brought it to me himself.

When I was a little girl, I remember getting to stay up late with my mom all the time. My mom tells a story of when I was just three and four and when I'd tell the "kids" (Shaun and Sloan) that it was "time for bed" because my mom and I had to eat some truffles from See's Candy. That tradition hasn't stopped. I still love eating truffles with my mom after everyone's asleep and Matthew is no different!