Happy Mother's Day...

I have a lot of Mother's in my life. My parents are divorced and re-married and Will's parents are also divorced and re-married...so that is four different sets of parents to keep track of, send pictures to and not call on their birthdays or major holidays. (Really, I am sorry about that!) I feel so fortunate to have married a man with absolutely wonderful parents. I love them all dearly and treasure each of them. I am always thankful to report that I have no "monster in-law" stories. These people are great and I love them very much.

I also love my Mother. She is a woman who defies description but I am gunna try! This lady had ten kidd-o's. Do you believe that? TEN! I think back on my childhood now and say to myself: "How in the heck did we all survive?" "How did she feed us, clothe us, teach us and love us all?" My childhood was a happy one. There are memories that make me shake my head in wonder but as a child I was perfectly oblivious to the awe inspiring trials and joy we faced. We played in the mud, hid in piles of old clothes and climbed the apple trees in our yard. We rode our bikes around the block, left sandy hand prints on every surface and learned how to wash mountains of dishes by hand. We learned how to cook and care for those around us. Equally important, we learned how to make due with what we had...even when that was very little. We were in by the time the street lights came on and out when the sun rolled up. We laughed, cried, cringed and grinned. And through every second of life we knew we had a Mother who loved us. Who wondered where we were at night and made sure there was something warm to eat in the oven for whenever we did get home.

I love you Mom. Thanks for truly being the greatest.