BEING a Mother

A blog I love really got me thinking about how I view Motherhood.  Sometimes I revel in being a Mother.  I love the things I can do to make my home and family happy.  And other times I feel bogged down by the daily demands.  Sometimes my tasks seem mundane.  There's an endless to-do list that never really gets finished.  Before one day's to-do list even gets completely checked off, another day's list has already begun.  There just don't seem to be enough hours in a day to do everything I need to do.  But maybe its not so much about doing, but about being.  Instead of thinking about all the things I need to do, I want to think about those tasks as steps toward being the kind of person and Mother want to be.   Its not just doing the tasks of Motherhood, but being a Mother.

When the tasks that keep our family running seem tiresome or overwhelming, I want to think of them as opportunities to be patient, to be creative, to be frugal, to be cheerful, to be obedient, be fun, to be prepared, to be nurturing.  I think of how different my attitude could be when thinking of who I want to be, not just what I want to do.

The reasons I want to BE! :)

It's Fall Y'all!!!

With cooler temperatures in the air, we've enjoyed some outdoor fun!  One Monday evening, we decided to have a weenie roast in the backyard.

Elise drove Paige around in the jeep while they waited for the fire to get ready.  (I'm pretty sure the jeep was one of the best purchases ever.  8 years later, its still running strong!)

 Merry Grace got a little cooking help from her Dad.

Elise loves red hot dogs.  She's a southern girl, through and through!!!

 Ian and Paige joined in on the fun, too.  (Although, as soon as I took this picture, I took Paige's cooking utensil away from her and did it myself.  I don't think what she's doing there is quite safe enough! ;))

I'm not sure this is the typical way of eating a hot dog....

 But apparently, its just as delicious! :)

And after dinner we made s'mores.  Which were pretty near perfect!

The fall weather is wonderful.  I'm pretty sure this is Cory's favorite time of year.  He loves the crisp air.  And actually, I think we all do.  Its such a nice change.  And I think we're all ready for another bonfire! :)

Its Great to be Eight!!!

Last month, Ian celebrated a BIG birthday.  Maybe the biggest one yet.  He turned EIGHT years old.  And that means a baptism!  

 We were so proud of Ian's desire to be baptized, and so grateful to so many family and friends who helped us make this a day to remember.

Ian was able to be baptized on his birthday.  He had two of his uncles speak, his sister and aunt and papa sing a special musical number, and his grammy and uncle say prayers.  Cory baptized and confirmed him and we had many, many people who helped keep the little girls' quiet during the service, who cooked and brought food for refreshments, and friends who came to share in the joy of this special day.

We love that Ian has taken this important step on the path that leads back to his Father in Heaven.

I love this message.  We don't know everything, but we know enough.  Enough to be baptized.  Enough to choose the right.  Enough to follow the Savior.  

Awesomeness

How awesome is it to open your cabinet and find this?

 And this note in Paige's dresser?

 And this note in the copy of Jane Eyre I was reading?

Well, the answer is "Totally Awesome!"  Elise left these notes (and several others) tucked around in different places around the house.   And guess how awesome I think she is for making me smile and giving me a huge dose of love?  You guessed it!  "Totally Awesome."

Let them eat Cake!

Only not this cake.

For Ian's baptism, I decided to make THIS vertical layer cake with THESE beautiful roses on top.  Of course, its something I've never done before, but since when has that ever stopped me. ;)  I had it planned out and most everything went pretty well.  As with any new recipe, I learned a few things along the way that will make things easier the next time, but all it all, I was quite pleased with how things went.  I had one cake iced and was working on the second one.  The first one had white icing (baptism, purity--you know) so I decided to to the next one in Carolina blue, knowing Ian would love that.  I had just finished it.  It looked lovely.  When have I ever made two pretty cakes, back to back?  Ask anyone who has every celebrated a birthday with our family and they will tell you the answer.  Never.

And what a nice, tidy little story it would be, if that were the end.   Unfortunately, I had to move the cake from one counter to the other, and that was my downfall.  Or the cake's.  Literally.

I can't even be sure exactly how it happened.  One minute I was holding the cake, the next minute it was falling to the ground.

Heroically, I was able to prevent it from falling on the floor by slamming it into the side of my cabinet. :)

And if you were only to look at it at eye level from this one side, you might think it still looked okay.  Sort of.

But really, is anyone actually going to do that?  So if you're a normal person, this is what you'd see.

I stood and stared for a few stunned minutes in silence, thinking that if maybe I just blinked a few more times, my cake would still be intact.  Alas, that was not the case.  And so I had a good laugh over the whole thing and texted the sad pictures to Cory.  :)

All I can say is, thank goodness I made two cakes, because the first one was delicious. :)

Loving Yourself

This morning, Paige asked me to make some lemonade.  I was just finishing stirring it, when she asked, "Is it ready, Mommy?"  I replied, "Yeah, buddy!"  She just grinned at me and said, "I am not a buddy.  I am Paige.  Logan Paige."  I laughed and said, "I know.  And I love Logan Paige."  Then she laughed and said, "I love Logan Paige, too.  And you love Logan Paige.  I just love myself."

When you're this adorable, even when you're being silly, its easy to see why you love yourself. :)

I hope as she grows up, she can always remember to love herself.  Not the too much kind of love.  The just right kind of love that helps you be patient, forgiving and kind to yourself.  If she'll just try to see herself the way I do, it shouldn't be any problem. :)