~Beauty in Being a Mother~

I realize I'm a few days late with this post...in light of the overwhelming busyness of this time of year with 2 children in school, I'm sure you all can understand =). Anyway, if you've read any portion of any post on this blog, you'll know that I'm absolutely in love with being a Mother. To me, it's the greatest reward. I feel enormously fortunate to have had the title "Mother" written into my life plan from my extraordinary creator, Jesus. Because of this, I feel that it's my duty, if you will, to raise my children knowing the love & grace that He has shown me. I dream of being this type of parent...I really do. I have dreams about my children facing trials in life, and how I'll lead them to the Lord in prayer. I see myself holding them & nurturing them, and telling them about the special gifts that Jesus has for them. I pray that the Lord will make me increasingly aware of this calling so that my thoughts, words, and actions reflect what he needs to teach my children through me. And, I have to say...this mindset has changed me. That is why I say that there is "beauty in being a Mother...."

About one week before Mother's Day, I received a special invitation from sweet Sailer to a Mother's Day luncheon at her school....my little girl was so excited to have me there to join her for lunch! I felt SO loved! That morning, as I was helping her get dressed (in her sweet tea party dress), she said..."Mommy, there gonna be a special purple chair for you today!" And, sure enough, when we walked into the classroom, there were purple chairs for the mommies...:) Only my girl would remember that very important detail...lol...especially since one of her fave colors is purple. At my seat, there was a "berry" special Mother's Day card for me from Sailer, along with a laminated placemat. Inside the card was 4 questions...answered by Sailer. #1. What is your mom's name? Sailer: Summer. #2. My mom is ______ years old. Sailer's answer: 4! lol. #3. My mom's favorite thing to do is__________. Sailer's answer: I don't know. lol. #4. My favorite thing to do with my mom is ___________. Sailer's answer: ride a scooter! haha! What a sweet & funny girl! The interesting part about question #4 is that Sailer and I had only ridden a scooter together ONCE....guess that was a really special memory for her:-).

On the Saturday before Mother's Day, my mother-n-law asked us to join her for a charity event at Acworth Beach....it turned out to be loads of fun! And, we sort of treated it as our "family Mother's Day" time, since we (or most of us) could make it. There was yummy BBQ, ice cream, fun music (we even did the electric slide!), a playground, and jumpies! FUN stuff!

And, as if I haven't said so enough on this blog....(ha!), I just absolutely A-D-O-R-E my son, Noah....or, should I say, my soon-to-be SIX year old son! That is just crazy, isn't it???? Friends, he really has my heart. I say that often, but I truly cannot think of another way to describe how I love him. He is just the most compassionate soul, and I'm head over heels for him! I've included below a couple of pics that Jason took of Noah about a week ago....he's incredibly tall & lean...even his voice is starting to change, and it is all bittersweet, as you can imagine. But, I am ever so proud of him, and I find it a JOY to be his mom!

These children, along with Jason (cannot forget my hubby on this for sure!), make me feel SO beautiful, inside and out! And, for that, I am so thankful...and, I feel so very loved....