4 Mother's Day

This Mother's Day was a simple and wonderful day with my little people.  This year I celebrated being a Mom to 4 loves of my life.  Of course, it was also a day of mommy-hood where I was up with Jack who had a raging fever at 3a.m., he finally when back to sleep at 5:00a.m.   Then I could hear Tessa's little sounds as she was up early at 5:15...may as well make a cup of coffee!  Juddy came down and was bummed because I wasn't in bed so he could bring me breakfast in bed.  Instead, he brought me Cheerios to the couch, with a hug and kiss.  Perfect.  We all had the best kind of morning...a lazy one.  That day we made a "lava" science experiment with baking soda an vinegar and went outside to play.  Later the 6 of us all went out to dinner and hit the DQ.  It was normal, relaxing, I was with my little people...perfect.

Last year at this time, I was thinking so much about our daughter and feeling an emptiness in my heart.  Was our daughter born?, was she o.k.?, what was her birth mother going through?, when would we have a referral and bring her home?  It was all still a mystery.  And this year in the early morning hours,  while the house was quite, I embraced Tessa in my arms, snuggled with her for a whole hour.  Felt my gratitude for her presence in our lives.  Felt the gratitude for the gift of motherhood in my life.  Felt the love and gratitude I have for her Ethiopian mother.  As I held Tessa in my arms I felt her little heart beating and breathe on my cheek and sent my love into the universe for Tessa's Ethiopian mother.  That somehow she may feel the love, the security that is surrounding Tessa today and always.

What I love the most about Mother's Day are the wonderful hand-made presents from the kids.  Oh, how I love them!  I will keep each of them forever.  This year Judson gave me a drawing of me surrounded by flowers and had little descriptive terms (which seems appropriate since I recently went crazy planting flowers all around the house)!  He also made a wonderful little paper purse and when you open it you see his handprint with a heart and jewel in the middle representing "the kissing hand".  He also gave me a little painted pot with flowers.

Unbelievably, Drew's presents to me survived being pulled out of his backpack and ripped open by Bob the Bulldog!   Drew made me a clay hand, which now sits by my kitchen window sill and a plastic plate with a drawing of me with flowers and a bit "I Love You Mom".   I am so happy they survived!  I have to share the poem that came with Drew's clay hand...it fills my eyes with happy tears!

This is my gift for Mother's Day,

It is a part of me,

It is my hand filled with love,

For everyone to see.

This is also to remind you,

When I have grown so tall,

That once I was a Kindergartner,

And my hands were very small.

I thank you for your loving ways,

And for the special things you do,

You seem to know about everything,

I'm so very proud of you.

And as I grow up bigger,

I just wanted one more things to say,

You're the best mom ever,

And I love you more and more each day.

Jack was so proud that he too had a gift for me this year.  He made a handprint flower art piece and then a handprint painted flower pot filled with flowers.  He keeps pointing them out to me in the house and outside (where the flowers are).  It is adorable.

There really isn't anything better than the handmade gift.  They fill me up with gratitude and love.  I love being a Mom....and am so grateful to have had my mother who loved me unconditionally.  I have had so many amazing women in my life that have shown me the way...family, friends....you know who you are.  Happy Mother's Day!

my Mom