Motherhood

Being a mom is hard.  Like stinking hard!  

I believe this was taken when my parents were going to Philmont, NM for a scout thing.  This was at Grandpa and Grandma Richardson's house in Bluewater. 

My mom would die if she knew I was sharing this picture.  I actually took it from her house about two years ago and now keep it in a book on motherhood that I have.  This pretty much sums up motherhood in one snapshot.  Wiped.  Out.  But the kids are still going.

But the beautiful thing is, you are never alone.  I love this painting by Brian Kershisnik.  Look at the mother's face.  

I can't put a number on the times I have felt like that.  There have been many nights when I sat by my kids' beds wishing I had been more patient that day or shown them more love.  But somehow, they wake up in the morning and never remember what a monster I was the day before.  

And really, the same goes for them.  It can be pure pandemonium around here and I can hustle everyone off to bed, but once they are asleep, I miss them.  

And the really wonderful thing about being a mom is, you are never ever doing it alone.  Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said,   "You can’t possibly do this alone, but you do have help. The Master of Heaven and Earth is there to bless you...Yours is the work of salvation, and therefore you will be magnified, compensated, made more than you are and better than you have ever been as you try to make honest effort, however feeble you may sometimes feel that to be."

I could include a million quotes on this, but I'll just share a few that touch me the most:

“Motherhood is near to divinity. It is the highest, holiest service to be assumed by mankind.”  -Howard W. Hunter

"There is no one perfect way to be a good mother. Each situation is unique. Each mother has different challenges, different skills and abilities, and certainly different children. The choice is different and unique for each mother and each family. Many are able to be “full-time moms,” at least during the most formative years of their children’s lives, and many others would like to be. Some may have to work part-or full-time; some may work at home; some may divide their lives into periods of home and family and work. What matters is that a mother loves her children deeply and, in keeping with the devotion she has for God and her husband, prioritizes them above all else."  -M. Russell Ballard

“The future destiny of the child is always the work of the mother.”  -Napoleon Bonaparte 

This little note from Kimber hangs on my refrigerator.  It reminds me to slow down.  One evening I was buzzing around taking care of my normal evening duties.  Kimber kept hounding me to give her a split second of attention so she could hand it over to me.  I finally said, "what Kimber?!"  She then handed me this sweet note.

I love my hooligans.  They keep me on my toes, they keep me running, they keep me on the verge on insanity, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.  Even on my hardest day.