Mother's Day

Kimberly asked me a few months ago when she could come babysit.  I gave her the choice of either Round Four or Surgery week.  Surgery week worked out better for her and Danen, so they booked her flights.  I was touched by her willingness to come all the way out here, by Danen's offer to watch all of her kids so that she could focus all of her energies on mine, but the biggest thing for me is Kimberly's sacrifice to spend Mother's Day away from her babies.  I called her before she booked her tickets, bawling because it had hit me that she wouldn't be home for today.  She said she realized that as soon as I told her the dates, but that she was just excited to help.  Such love for me!  Today, during Sacrament Meeting, the Primary children got up to sing a song to the Mothers in the congregation.  As their sweet voices filled the Chapel, "Mother, I love you.  Mother, I do.  Heavenly Father has sent me to you..." I was struck with such love for my kids and such sadness that Kimberly was missing the song her children would be singing for her.  I love being a mother!  I have always wanted to be a mother!  How grateful I am for another mother that left her babies to watch over mine.  Thank you Danen and Kimberly for sacrificing so much for me and my family.  You are the Aunt and Uncle that was formed through friendship, but are loved just as much as if by blood!

13 years ago, I was sitting on a piano bench playing the piano for another Primary.  My back was killing me.  Not from the hard bench, but from the baby resting in my belly.  The back labor was so intense that after the sweet voices filled that chapel, I went home to rest.  We actually have a picture in one of our picture books of me completely sprawled out on the bed- directly in the middle with legs and arms extending in all directions.  I missed holding Caden in my arms that Mother's Day 2001 by only two days.  I'm missing him in my arms once more. 

Friday night in the ICU, another family joined us in our room.  A baby of only 10 months, returning from brain surgery, wanted to be snuggled by his own mother.  They couldn't find another rocking chair, so I gladly gave away mine.  This left me without a "bed" for the night.  I would give up my place a million times over if it meant that a mother got to soothe her crying child- even for a moment.  Since I was planning to come home on Saturday morning anyway, we decided that I would just drive home Friday night instead.  I was nervous to approach a sleeping Caden to tell him the news.  I woke him for sleep to tell him of the news, wondering if he was going to be ok with it all. 

"Caden, I don't have a bed tonight, so I'm going to drive home.  Is this alright with you?"

A long pause.  And a snore.  He has been heavily medicated, so I knew he probably wasn't really hearing what I was saying.

"Caden, is that alright?"

After a longer pause and in a sleepy-slurred voice, "Happy Mother's Day.  I love you!"

With tears streaming down my face and love overflowing my heart, I kissed my first-born babe.  The child that made me a mother 13 years ago.  The miracle I get to raise.

I'm getting prepared to leave my other four babies to head back to Seattle.  I'm not sure what I've done to deserve these wonderfully perfect spirits.  This is not the scenario I envision for a perfect Mother's Day, but I'm grateful for the time I have today to spend with all of my children.  I love being a Mother!!  I love the children that make me a Mother!  I love my own Mother!  She is the one that taught me so much, that made me appreciate the 'job' of motherhood, and shows me how to be a good one- even now.  I love my new Mother!  The one that raised the best man of my dreams, the love of my life.  I am the luckiest girl on earth!  Or as Tyson would say, The luckiest human on earth.

Happy Mother's Day to all women!!