We're Not Perfect Mothers

A Blog Post from October 27, 2012 - From a blog I had but have since deleted 

I recently reorganized our pictures on the computer (I LOVE organizing) and I was looking at old pictures and videos of the kids from when they were born up until now. I was kind of emotional, how could I forget them in those first months of their lives, when they are so innocent and helpless and beautiful, so quickly. And how much time we spent just looking at them! And it wasn't even that long ago for Ginger. Now it seems like I am just looking at the tops of their heads all day long and telling them 'no!' or 'stop!'. And then feeling awful when Tipo gets this defeated look in his eyes and says "oh, sorry mom" and turns and walks away. Or Ginger scrunches up her face and cries and puts her arms out to me for a hug. Breaks my heart every time. So why do I keep doing it?
How quickly we forget!
We will all fail our children in one way or another, no mother is perfect! I hope that doesn't sound negative, it's not meant to be. I just mean that we can't beat ourselves up for not doing everything perfectly. I know I struggle with feeling like a failure a lot of times because I am not acting like the mother I always thought I would be.
A current LDS leader and Apostle Elder M Russell Ballard said:

"There s no one perfect way to be a good mother. Each situation is unique. Each mother has different challenges, different skills and abilities, and certainly different children. The choice is different and unique for each mother and each family....What matters is that a mother lovers her children deeply and, in keeping with the devotion she has for God and her husband, prioritizes them above all else." {Daughters of God}

Being a mother is being in a relationship with your child.
Being a mother is not a set of tasks to accomplish and we aren't graded on how well we do compared to other mothers. (Erickson, 135)  

Erickson, Janet J. "Mothers as Nurturers." Successful Marriages and Families: Proclamation Principles and Research Perspective. (2012): 128-139. Print.

The Little Things

A blog post from November 13, 2012 - on another blog I had but have since deleted. 

"We must look carefully, therefore, not only at life’s large defining moments but also at the seemingly small moments. Even small acts and brief conversations count, if only incrementally, in the constant shaping of souls." Neal A Maxwell

Yesterday I took the kids outside to the playground. Sometimes it's hard for me to just be out there watching them with not enough energy to get up and play and I couldn't seem to stop yawning either! But on that day my kids noticed a bug on the playground wall. On closer inspection it looked like a very old (and large!) ladybug with no spots at all. It even had a limp, or at least that's what it looked like. The kids were so enthralled by this one tiny little bug  Whenever the kids would get too close the ladybug would stop and pull it's legs in, and after awhile get up and start moving again. After awhile Joseph decided to give the ladybug some obstacles he grabbed sticks and put them in the ladybug's way. Sometimes she would climb over them and sometimes she would go down around the side of the wall and back up on top. After sometime you could see a string of sticks evenly placed on the wall and all of a sudden it looked like Bug Olympics and Joseph was the coach.
For some reason that very insignificant event seemed very not insignificant. It was a moment of just seeing the world as my kids do and finding joy in simple things, something I haven't done in a long time. I'm really grateful for my kids, and their unique perspective on life. I'm grateful for small moments of sharing an experience with them.

“Grand drama and ecstatic moments do not make a life good. Life is an everyday affair, and the sum total of unremarkable, daily happenings define its quality. In the prosaic novel, heroes and heroines who live for extreme moments misunderstand what life is... Many can perform heroic actions in the sight of all, but few posses the courage to do small things right without recognition” ~ Gary Saul Morson 

This is What Our Home Looks Like When We Are ALL Sick

Lots of sleeping, movie watching and non-cleaning. Okay... to be honest the mess can be pretty typical in our house at times. But definitely when everybody is sick. I had cleaned the living room Thursday and then that night I was throwing up. The next morning Cody was nauseous and by mid-day Rylee had a temperature. Joseph didn't get a temperature until this morning. Louise is the only one not sick right now. (although she was throwing up last Monday) We all still recovering.

Little Rylee was sick yesterday with the flu. So she spent the day laying on the couch watching Netflix or in her bed conked out. Thankfully she started to feel better later in the day and by dinner time she was running around and screaming with Joseph. She is the first to get sick this season. Who will be next? 

Louise is 11 Months

Our redhead

I think sometimes I forget that Rylee is a redhead. Which isn't too surprising I guess since it isn't the only thing that defines her. But I do love her hair. I am slightly jealous.... only slightly. There are times I think her hair is such a dark color that it will change to look more brown than red. Sometimes, depending on the light, it doesn't look that red at all. As much as I adore her red hair and would be a tinge sad if it ever changed to brown (not that I don't like Brown. My hair is brown and I love it) she is beautiful to me no matter what.

I think having a daughter can be kind of scary because of the confusing and mixed messages out there about girls and women. I don't want her to be confused of who she is. More than anything and more than any other label she may be known by or even give herself - there is one thing I want her to always know - She is a Daughter of God and has infinite potential to be an amazing woman.

I love my redhead.

Photo Dump!

Now for the Photo Dump from the last couple of months!

Cute

Cute again

Beautiful fall mountain

First solids!

She is a little mischief maker!

Louise LOVED Aunite Em's trampoline. 

Precious

Jumping in the Leaves

Gigi's visit!

Looking for Bugs (She is our bug lover)

plein air (outside painting)  painting with the family!

I just really like this outfit - the shirt's tag says "Jillian's Closet" :)

This is part of why I wanted Rylee's hair long - I love this high messy bun - I can't really pull it but Rylee can! :)

Lui wishes she could join the kids at bathtime. 

The Beginning of Summer

Play Picnic in the Living Room

Crazy hair day at school

Rylee 'reading' to Louise

For several days we had a little bird perched on our balcony singing away. 

Hair cut....what do you think?

Cody made this rock for some movie (we have no idea what movie). It's made of Styrofoam and clay. 

Picnic 

 

Selfie fail - It was our anniversary.

Baseball in the park