Rollercoasters...: My Greatest Blessings Are My Children

As I have been pondering this upcoming Mother’s Day, I have had MANY thoughts mulling around in my head, but especially in my heart. If the truth must be known, my family is my heart, pure and simple. I enjoy the blessings of being a mother because of my children. I also reap the blessings of being a Nana because of my darling granddaughters. As I ponder ALL these blessings, my heart is full and I feel the need to offer gratitude to those who have loved me unconditionally and have helped to qualify me for the grand position of “mother.” This blog post is dedicated to those wonderful people I call family.

My mother, my father, my husband, each of my children & their spouses, and my grandchildren are a culmination of “why” I love motherhood.

I am grateful that my parents endured my childhood and most especially my teenage years. My mother’s example of unconditional love and sacrifice were my very first lessons on “how” to be a good mother.

Unconditional love, smiles, patience, appreciation, and more love are what I have learned from being a mother. Here are some examples from my ordinary life:

When Chelsea came home from the hospital, after being born 2 months early, I had to wake her every 3 hours a) to feed her, b) to change her diaper, c) to pump, d) put her back to bed, e) clean-up everything, f) go back to sleep for at least an hour, AND repeat this process every 3 hours. Although I was exhausted, she was the first to teach me about the very real caring of another human being…the caring for my child. The blossoms of a mother’s love began with her. She is now a mother herself, and I marvel in her natural abilities of focusing on her girls’ every needs. I now have grandmother’s blossoms of love to add to my garden and they are wonderful.

When Aaron would tell stories about swimming with dolphins, or I would find him hanging (and screaming for someone to help him) from the 2^nd story roof of our tree house only to tell me that the wind blew him up there, or falling out the 2^nd story window of the beach house after his sister dared him to bare his butt out of it, or receiving a call from his high school teacher as he was being somewhat disruptive, I just knew there was a brilliant mind at work. And, that has proven to be true. He has grown to be a man a mother can be proud of. From serving a faithful and successful mission, to graduating from college Summa Cum Laude, to being at the top of his medical school class, he has truly excelled in life. But when I see how tenderly he treats his wife and jumps in to help her, I am filled with love and admiration for the man he is. He not only taught me patience, but also taught me to relax, enjoy the ride, and especially to laugh. He has also taught me that determination, focus, and steadfastness will help in achieving goals. My blossoms of a mother’s love grew, and I had a garden that brought me great joy.

Every teacher, every professor, every employer always and forever had the most wonderful things to say about Rachel. When in grade school, she would be found helping to feed the special needs students their lunch or playing with them on the playground so they wouldn’t feel left out. In second grade, she would often be found reading stories to her class members. She genuinely cares about people. Her pure kindness and compassion has blossomed and led her in a direction to help and lift others. One of her teachers once told me, “your daughter is not only smart, beautiful on the inside and on the out, but you can tell she has God in her life.” And again, my blossoms of a mother’s love grew and I loved my garden.

Our youngest Zach came into this world and stole our hearts. One day, one of our Spanish bayonet yucca plants pierced my hand ~it actually hit a vein and blood was oozing! I went into the house and Zach saw my hand and immediately said, “Mom, let me help you! I am a Boy Scout and I learned how to fix this!” While I knew I was going to be all right, I needed to let him help me, as he desperately wanted to do so. It was so cute how he got a towel and began applying pressure, explaining to me all the while “why” he was doing what he was doing. That memory still makes me smile. He loved playing on his drums. He loved finding things to do when he was “bored.” He was not afraid to try and do anything, because he loved to experience everything. My garden was beautiful and full with Zach’s added splash of color. But now, there is a little patch of blossoms missing from my garden here on earth, as my Zach walks with angels. He is deeply missed from my earthly garden. I am grateful for angel blossoms for they have taught me through the depths of sorrow that death cannot destroy the blossoms of a mother’s love.

I love my garden. I love the beauty of all the different flowers for they show their different personalities…their own uniqueness. When I gather all those flowers and create the most beautiful bouquet, I have created my family. Each flower is sweet. Each flower is extraordinary. Each flower is precious. Each flower is a gift from God. I am ever grateful for the privilege I have been given to be a mother. It truly is the greatest calling I could ever hope to have in life.

Below are some pics that bring me joy AND...IF... you want to keep reading, I wrote a poem just for my kids! I love you all and thank you for being my greatest treasures. <3