On Being a Mom

Happy Mother's Day!

I have been thinking about some of the unique and special moments that come to a mom.  There is nothing like watching your children learn.  It is such a special and divine moment when you see them piece something together or learn how to do something new. 

A mom gets used to talking to a baby without response and does this for typically more than a year.  My youngest has been vocally responding for a couple months now, and it still surprises me almost each time.  She can talk to me.  How cool is that.  When I ask questions to try to help her understand how she is feeling or define her world, she can tell me if I'm right or not.  This is one of my favorite transitions.  After feeling like I'm talking to myself for so long and wondering if it makes a difference, all of a sudden she is answering me and surprising me by how smart and how much of an individual she is. 

Being a mom is SO much harder than I ever thought it would be for me, but there are so many moments that make it worth it and make it enjoyable!  I am so grateful to be a mom and am quite in awe of mothers the world over. 

I have one of the most dedicated mothers and she has always been that way.  I am grateful for her and wish I could have known what her world was like while I was influencing it daily through my every action.  How I would have tried to be more kind and gentle. 

Books

I discovered today that that books are my best friends.  It's a little sad to discover and sounds like a lonely world I'm in.  I'd rather go to the library by myself and brose for new books than most anywhere else.  I'd also prefer an evening of reading a good book to almost anything.  I definitely need balance in my life and enjoy several other things, but I start to get fidgety without a book on hand that I want to read. 

I truly feel a loss when I finish a book I really like.  I used to always be in the midst of multiple books all at once to prolong the inevitable finish or to have something else to fall back on when I just can't put off devouring a good book.  Now I'm a mom, so with less reading time, I limit myself to one. 

If you read this, feel free to recommend a good book. 
 

I will follow Him

I am grateful for the things that inspire.  I am grateful for things that remind me of why I am here and what my purpose is.  I just watched an inspiring and sad movie that reminded me of the things that are most important to me.  I want to follow my Savior and be able to lift others in meaningful ways. 

I know what I need to do and it starts by once again humbling myself and asking the Lord if He will kindly step back in front for a while until I get good enough at following Him to where, maybe someday I can walk beside Him again.  To walk beside the Savior, you have to have followed Him consistently enough to know where and how He will step, what stops He will make, what detours He would take, and where your path is headed.  You have to know what things He would walk around and what things He would walk into.  You have to have courage to always stand for what is right. 

To follow Him, you have to learn of Him and practice doing what He would do and saying what He would say until you have it down enough that you rarely stumble and have to find your way back.  So, that's where you'll find me.  What does Jesus do?