I hope everyone had a wonderful mother’s day! Mother’s Day has a whole new meaning to me now, and I am so grateful for it.
(My sweet sister, mom and baby. These are the most important and influential women in my life and I admire them both tremendously.)
Growing up, I had an amazing childhood. I didn’t know my parents struggled with money because my sister and I always had what we needed. We lived in a beautiful house and we took fun vacations every year. We were involved in dance, sports, and music classes. Looking back now, I took so much for granted. My mom and dad sacrificed so much for us. They lived paycheck to paycheck, but still they wanted to make sure we were happy and set up for a better life then they had.
(My amazing mom and dad. Braxton adores both of them, and lots of people say Braxton looks like my dad!)
Now, I want to make Baby Braxton’s childhood as great as mine was. I want him to wake up every Christmas to a pile of brightly colored packages. I want him to be able to join any sports team, club, or activity he wants regardless of how much they cost and how much driving around I’d have to do. I want to be at every game just like my dad was at every swim meet. I don’t want him to ever know if his parents ever have any money trouble because that isn’t his problem. I want him to be a child for as long as possible and not have to worry about “grown-up” problems.
I’m grateful that my mom loves him as much as I do, and that she has not ever stopped being my mom. She still makes sure I’m OK, and is always there to help with my son when I need her. The week he was born, she not only did all the cooking and cleaning for me, but she stayed up with him on multiple nights to make sure I got enough rest. She has never stopped being my mom, and it’s taught me that I will never stop being Braxton’s mom. But on the same token, she has never overstepped any boundaries. She has graciously accepted being in the “grandmother” role to him and allowed me to 100% be his mother. She has never tried to tell me how to parent, and she allows me the space for my little family to bond and create memories of our own. This is also something I want to remember as I get older and Braxton someday has a family of his own. She has taught me more than I’ll probably ever realize and I only wish she will realize someday what a perfect role model she is and always will be to me.
With all that being said, I wanted to briefly talk about my own personal Mother’s Day weekend. To be honest, I didn’t love or feel completely special last year on my 1st Mother’s Day. Braxton was only 2 weeks old, I was completely sleep deprived and we spent the whole day going back and forth between our parents houses’ to celebrate my mother and my mother-in-law. Because of all the driving, we never actually went and ate a meal, and I never got my own celebration. It wasn’t about presents, but it was about feeling special and appreciated. It felt selfish even thinking that way, but if I’ve learned anything about marriage, I’ve learned you have to communicate your feelings. So this year, I asked my husband for a re-do of a 1st Mother’s Day. Again, it wasn’t about getting gifts, but about spending time together and feeling celebrated myself. He completely delivered. We spent time walking around Lake Travis, he let me sleep in, changed every diaper, washed every dish, gave me multiple back massages, and took over baby duties so I would even have some time to myself to take an extra long shower and relax. So mama’s, sometimes it’s hard to ask for something for yourself because our brains are wired to be selfless for our kids, but one day a year, I think it’s important to treat yourself. So just like everything in marriage, communicate with your partner so that you can get the day you want!
(I loved our walk and loved even more that my husband humored me by agreeing to wear our “Bear Family” shirts even though they’re black and it was burning hot.)
I always knew I had a wonderful mom, but I never fully understood until I became a mother myself. Now I can only hope to be the mom she was to me. To all the mother’s out there, in any form, Happy Mother’s Day and know that you are appreciated every day of the year.
(Special thanks to my sister and her husband this weekend for watching our sweet boy while we had a date night at a wedding. Braxton loves his Aunt and Uncle so much and probably didn’t even miss his parents being gone. Even though he only gets to see them about once a month, he knows who they are and hugs and hangs on his Aunt just as much as his does his mommy.)
(A rare date night, dressed up and without a baby. Congrats to our friends’ who got married this weekend and allowed us a fun night out. We wish ya’ll a wonderful marriage full of love, laughter and of course babies!)
(It’s funny marrying someone you grew up with, but weren’t actually friends with. Blair and I have known each other since middle school, but never actually knew each other. We went to the same high school as well, the same church, and lived in the same neighborhood. But never actually hung out…Going to this wedding reminded me even more of how close my husband and I were growing up without actually being close. The groom is someone I had been friends with since our Kindergarten class together. The groom is also someone my husband was friends with in high school and college. With all our similarities, it still took 15 years for us to actually date. God works in mysterious ways sometimes.)