Category: Motherhood

Birthday Boy

Today my baby, my BABY turned 31 years old. Wow. I always heard parents say that you don’t feel old until your youngest child turns 30. I must agree.

Thirty-one years ago I awakened on a beautiful summer morning from a dream that I had had a baby. Shortly after I got up, my water broke. I called my husband and told him to come home. I called my mother-in-law and asked if she could come and be with my two other little boys. I then shaved my legs. Really. Baby coming or not, I wanted smooth legs, no stubs.

Noah was born via Caesarean section, as were my other two. My firstborn, was a hefty 8 pounds, 11 ounces. He was also in a breech position. The doctor felt it best to go Caesarean. I certainly agreed.

At the time of Noah’s birth, I was working at the hospital in which he was born so I feel that I received extra special care from the nursing staff and also had many visitors. It is a good memory for obvious reasons but also for the bonus of familiarity. 

One of the hit songs in the time period of Noah’s birth was Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now, by Jefferson Starship. What a catchy, great song. I remember specifically that song was playing on the radio when we were en route to the hospital. It has, since that time, become known as Noah’s song. Even now when we happen to catch it on an oldies station, we all smile and know. 

Here are a few lines from the song:

I’m so glad I found you

I’m not gonna lose you

Whatever it takes

I will stay here with you

Take it to the good times

See it though the bad times

Whatever it takes

Is what I’m gonna do

And that is how life has been with Noah these 31 amazing years. Enjoying the good times. Seeing each other through the tough times. Whatever it takes is what I’m gonna do. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you, my beautiful baby boy and now grown man. Push on in this life, and you will continue to find your way. 

Mother’s Day

The modern version of Mother’s Day began in 1908 when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother at St. Andrew’s Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia. Her campaign to make Mother’s Day a recognized holiday in the United States began in 1905, the year her mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, died. 

Ann Jarvis had been a peace activist who cared for wounded soldiers on both sides of the Civil War and created Mother’s Day Work Clubs to address public health issues. 

Anna Jarvis wanted to honor her mother by continuing the work she started and set aside a day to honor all mothers. 

One of the most important statements in this blog is part of the above sentence, “…continuing the work she [her mother] started.”

Isn’t that what all mothers do? We continue the work our mothers started.

The two women who surround me in this photo have done exactly that, surrounded me with their love and support. They continued the work their mamas started in them.

I have never been able to relate to “mother-in-law” jokes or women talking negatively about their mothers-in-law.

Mine is a gem. The Lord was gracious in gifting her to me. She has modeled patience and joy and grace and unconditional love in the midst of difficulty. 

She also taught me how to make perfectly creamy mashed potatoes.

My mama, though she now struggles with dementia, modeled perseverance, strength and faithfulness, in life events that could justifiably produce a thin faith. 

I am thankful this day that I am in the ranks of motherhood. My three sons are brilliant, caring, passionate and compassionate men. They are three of my dearest friends.

I read a quote today bout being a mother. It is this:

The most precious jewels you’ll ever have around your neck are the arms of your children.

How true that is. When my little boys put their chubby, warm (and often messy) sweet arms around my neck, nothing else mattered. I would not trade one, not even one of those priceless moments for the richest strand of pearls or The Heart of the Ocean necklace.

For this 60 year old mother, Mother’s Day is a time to honor my past, enjoy my present, and anticipate the future.

Happy Mother’s Day to to these two dear ones. And Happy Mother’s Day to myself, as I continue the work they started. 

Ask Mom

Today I took my middle son, Christopher, to the airport to catch a flight back to New York, where he is staying for about four weeks. He had been home for a weekend visit to attend his Grandma’s 90th birthday party.

I had a meeting at work at 2:30 so had about an hour to fill between. I decided to shop for one hour, and only one hour. I set the timer on my phone so I would not get carried away and lose track of time, which has indeed occurred. 

I stopped at a big outlet store, known for nice clothing that may have been an overstock item or last season’s style or have a small tear in a seam that can be easily repaired. The prices can be quite amazing.

Today, all black, white and navy pants were $1.99. Yep, it’s true. I bought two pair of white Gap jeans and two pair of black, skinny ankle length Banana Republic pants. All four pair for $8.00. Great for summer. 

While I was in the dressing room, making sure the pants fit (there are no returns), I overhead two sisters trying on clothes. They were asking each other’s opinions on different pieces. And they were very honest with each other. I heard one say “No, don’t get that dress. It makes you look fat.” The other called her a name then they continued chatting back and forth. 

I head one of them say “I really like this blouse, but look at this.” The other one replied “Oh, yep, I see that.” The first one then said “Take a picture of it and text it to Mom. Ask her if she can get that stain out.”

That made me smile. I do not have daughters, I have three sons. But I can imagine this scenario happening if I had daughters. 

Moms know things. When my mama was younger, I remember calling her to ask a question about cooking or how to hem a skirt or if I had measles as a child. 

Moms also know how to find things that no one else can find. I will empty every drawer and every closet and every box to find something for one of my children. 

Moms know how to gently rub a child’s back as he vomits. We give sympathetic “Oh honeys” and mean it every single time. I remember my mama doing this for me. 

Moms know how to help with science projects at 11:00 p.m. Moms know how to soothe a hurting child, whether that child is five or 25. 

Moms are not super stars. Moms do not have super powers. Moms simply have an innate sense of helping their kids find answers to their questions, come hell or high water. And we will search the ends of the earth to find that answer. 

We will go through the fire. We will stay up all night. We will fight the fiercest opponents. 

We can even tell how to get a stain out of an item of clothing when we are not present to actually look at it. 

Come to think of it, maybe we do have super powers.