Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day! Jonas has been looking forward to this day for quite some time. He painstakingly created some beautiful cards to give me and was so excited to finally share them with me. Actually, to be honest, I was looking forward to being celebrated, which is a first for me. Mother's Day usually comes with all sorts of emotions. In years passed, I have struggled to feel worthy of celebrating this day. I am acutely aware of my failings as a mother. I think I'm harder on myself than anyone else, but it seems to hurt most when others judge my faults or assign false labels to me without knowing the whole story (something I know I have been guilty of and am trying to be more conscious about). I have felt the pain of feeling forgotten or minimized on this day because of my lack of genetic connection to the majority of the kids I am privileged to parent. But not this year. This year I embraced the celebrations, and I honestly felt like I deserved to be celebrated. No, I am not perfect! Yes, I screw up on a daily basis. Yes, I am still learning how to be a parent. Every time I think I have something figured out, something changes (e.g., kids become adults, kids get married, kids become parents, what works for one teen doesn't work for the next, etc., etc., etc.). But I am trying! And I will never stop. I don't think you could ever reach perfection in parenting. I'm certain there will always be something that one kid (or more) will disagree with, perceive as a failure, or emphatically state that he or she would never do that to his or her own children. Parenting is ever-changing and always evolving. I'm just trying to keep up. I'm trying to be better and do better each day. And, in the process, I'm learning more about myself and my Savior. I can't say that there weren't moments of doubt or disappointment as I celebrated the day, but those were minuscule as compared to previous years. Honestly, I'm not sure there will ever be a moment when I feel like I've fully arrived at the pinnacle of parenting, but I know my heart. I know my efforts. I know where I'm heading...and it's a good place. 

The boys did an awesome job of spoiling me today! I woke up to a yummy breakfast and gifts/cards from each of them. Jeff also prepared lunch and dinner for me. Earlier in the week, I couldn't decide what to have for dinner so he came up with an idea and prepared it all on his own! It was delicious! He knows my comfort foods for sure. We attended church where Jonas got to sing a sweet Mother's Day song with the other primary kids. That evening, Jacob and Amber joined us. Amber recorded a song for me as a gift. By the end of the day, my heart was full. Being a mom can be extremely hard!, but then there are sweet moments like today that make it all worth it. Happy Mother's Day to all the incredible women/mothers in my life.

They worked so hard that they fell asleep!