We went to the library like I wanted to do, and then, because it was rainy and cold out, Bud and I decided it would be the perfect day to begin to put together my new puzzle. Perfect rainy day/Faux Mother's Day activities, if you ask me. Here we are looking for the edge pieces:
Rophone and the kids made me a lovely dinner (and the table was even set with goblets!) and gave me some wonderful gifts and cards (and lots of hugs!). I'm so glad that Rophone has such great taste in clothes, because I'm not very good at pretending I like things! :)
Edith made an adorable card and told me she loved me:
Big gave me an essay he wrote in school about why his mom is best. It's good to know he appreciates the things I do around here. :)
He was a little embarrassed about the mistake at the end, but I told him it was okay and that I loved it.
Bud gave me this beautiful piece of art he created. I love that it even has a built in frame.
Ginger used water colors to paint me a really cool picture, too. We're going to frame it for the wall.
Truth be told, I spend my life feeling like I'm never good enough-- worried that I'm too critical of my kids, so they don't know I love them; fearful that I'm so caught up in the day-to-day running of the household and our schedule that I don't seem fun; sometimes so resentful of the everyday drudgery of what I do that I worry that my kids only see someone who is bitter and unhappy; afraid that they only see me as someone here to do their laundry and feed them and drive them where they need to go. Not as a real person, maybe. And then Ginger gave me this:
I'm pretty sure I gasped out loud. I said something like, "I didn't know you see these things in me." And then something like, "I'm surprised you see these things about me." And then all the kids chimed in with an enthusiastic, "Why? You are those things!!" I almost burst into tears, but I knew that if I let myself that I'd probably just bawl and bawl and freak the kids out. So, I kept my composure. Although, even just writing about it today brings tears to my eyes.
What a gift. It was exactly what I needed. And I needed all of the other kids to enthusiastically agree like they did, too, acting like they couldn't understand why I didn't believe it because that's exactly what I am.
This is what being a mom is all about. Happy Faux Mother's Day to me. I'll never forget it.
3 comments:
That's really awesome, Jana. You are a great mom, sister, friend, and person! I think we are always harder on ourselves than others. I'm so glad you had such a great day :)
You are all those things your children said and you are also a little hard on yourself at times. You are a wonderful daughter and person and they are lucky to have you, as am I.
That is so great!! I am so happy she gave you that blessing!! I think it was Richard G. Scott who said women are such natural givers and spend so much time focusing on others that we easily overlook our own strengths and abilities. ....Okay, I knew I was messing it up, so I went and got it off my fridge: "Your divinely conferred trait of giving of self without counting the cost leads you to underestimate your own worth." So I'm glad Ginger and the rest reminded you. :)
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