Mother’s Day

Ah, yes. Another Mother’s Day blog post. But I couldn’t resist.

I woke up this morning to Theo bringing the two cats in with flowers tied around them. Moose hated having a flower tied to his back, so he was unhappy, but after they got freed from the flowers they purred and appreciated me. 🙂 And Theo had another flower that he says is from baby girl.

Theo also gave me this gorgeous necklace. T is the initial of our babe, and the giraffe is significant to us because we went to the see the giraffe’s together in Niger. I absolutely love the necklace.

Never has Mother’s Day meant so much to me. Sure, I’ve always appreciated my Mom, and my mother-in-law, I’ve always thought it was fun to have a day to say ‘thank you for all the hard work you do…thank you for raising me….thank you for being the best Mom’, but this year it has taken on new meaning. Carrying a human life myself has opened my eyes to how much of a sacrifice motherhood truly is, how much hard work it is, how mentally and physically draining it can be, how it alters one’s perception of oneself…and that is all just through pregnancy!

So, without further ado, I want to dedicate this post to several people.

First, to my grandma’s- both DeValve and Hall. Both sets of my Grandparents served as missionaries, and what a legacy they started and continue to weave. I am so thankful for my Grandmother’s who raised, trained, disciplined and praised both my Mom and Dad throughout their lives, and continue to do so today. I would not be where I am today if it was not for them.

Second, my own Mom. Like I mentioned before, I have never appreciated my Mom and all her hard work more than I do now that I get to experience motherhood myself. Looking back, I have no clue where she had the patience to handle me throughout all my growing up years (heaven help us if we have a child just like me!). She was my teacher, my comforter, a guide, but she also let me learn important lessons on my own. She partnered with my Dad to make their marriage work, their ministry work, and our family “work”. I cannot even describe how blessed I am to have the childhood that I had. My mother made almost every meal I ate growing up from scratch, she lived without running water and electricity, she lived through extreme heat and the stresses of living in one of the poorest countries in the world. And like I said before, she did it all with grace, patience and perseverance. Phew, what a woman!

Thirdly, my Mother-in-law. The father into this marriage I get, the more I realize what an incredible man Theo is. And I know that is greatly due to his mother and how she raised him. I would be incredibly proud if my daughter married a man like Theo, and I am just now beginning to understand all of the work that she put into raising Theo. Not only that, but she also raised 6 other men! She has wisdom, perseverance, and a great sense of humor. She gave her sons common sense, love, appreciation for the simple things in life, the ability to think about situations, and the knowledge of how to treat women and money. She taught them how to raise their children by raising her own in a god-honoring way. And on top of all that, she has welcomed all her new daughters with open arms and an open heart, imparting feminine wisdom to each of us that she was never able to give to her sons. This woman is a huge blessing, and I’m so glad that I get her for my mother-in-law.

(Raising all those sons- one is not pictured in the below picture!)

I am so thankful for the legacy of Mom’s that I have before me. I am thankful for my grandma’s, and my two moms. I get to look after their example, and hopefully raise my own child(ren) as they worked diligently to raise me and Theo. I also get to ask them questions, which is such a huge blessing to have.

Not only do I have the example of my own mother, but I also have the example of mother’s around me. I cannot tell you how many times Theo and I have simply stood and watched a child-meltdown situation, and literally jotted down notes of how it was handled. We have so many couples in our church who are just one step ahead of us in this whole child-rearing dealio, and we learn SO. MUCH from them every time we come into contact with them. I feel that I have especially learned a lot already from this beautiful woman and mother (can’t you see the adorable one hanging on her skirt?). This is my sister-in-law Kindrea, and I have learned so much about the model of motherhood from her- from her words of wisdom, but even more than that- from WATCHING how she raises her children.

I’m also excited to have some mother’s who are learning to be mothers right alongside me. This is my friend Vanessa, who is due with their first baby girl just four days before me! We have been helping each other out through this pregnancy journey, and I know we will stay close as we begin to raise our daughters outside the womb as well.

How blessed I am to have so many good examples, and so many people right alongside me in the trenches as I step out on this whole journey of motherhood! And I can’t forget to thank these two boys, who have already given me lots and lots of practice….

Happy Mother’s Day!