ever thankful for my MOM

 Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body. ~Elizabeth Stone

I would like to wish a Happy Mother’s Day to all of the wonderful women who have sacrificed much to give us life! We would not be here without you. [Thank you, Captain Obvious!] Seriously though, where would you be if it weren’t for the love, prayers, and support of your mother?

Before my last Mardi Gras parade! 

Mom had to march with me because she had had to sew me

into my pants!!!  [Picture Port-a-Potties?!]

Some of you may not know your biological mother but were blessed with a mom who took you in and loved you as her own. These moms are every bit as special and have been blessed with huge hearts.

My High School graduation celebration all dressed alike.

Emily, Me, Grandmother T, & Mom

Some of you have lost your mother; it is my prayer that you have only the best of memories to remember her by. I think moms who have gone before us sit at the entrance to Heaven, anxiously waiting for their children and grandchildren to come running through the pearly gates just as you did when getting off the bus, home from your first day at school.

 Hand bells at Christmas.

I get to play in a hand bell choir with my mom!

Looks like we're concentrating very hard

[and dressed in your normal kind of garb!].

Some of you are still waiting to be a mom. Whether you have been trying to have a child or are single and still waiting for your Man (like me!), I pray that you continue to seek God and His will for your life; He hears your cry and knows your heart. For all of the ‘Gonna-Be’s’, commit this verse to your heart’s memory:

4 Take delight in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Psalm 37:4 (NIV)

Field Trip!!!

@ Mike Huckabee book signing.

 

What is a mom?

Mothers come in all shapes and sizes. Ages and stages. Backgrounds and experiences.
Mom is who you call when you have no one else to talk to. Mom is who will listen to silence on the other end of the phone when you call just needing to know that someone is there for you. Mom is one who has not stopped praying for you since the day she learned of your existence. Mom is who cries with you when the world upsets you. Mom is who laughs with you when you are too tickled to get a funny story out. Mom is who can’t wait to hear about your date last night. Mom is so much more; words cannot fully express all that Mom is.

Her Royal Highness, Hot Mess
[That is me, BTW!]

I can honestly say that I do not envy my mother when it came to raising me. I was (and still am) a HOT MESS. My mom would tell you that I am responsible for at least half of the grey hairs on her head. Not that she has grey hair. But if she did, I would be the number one reason for them! Let’s say for examples sake she does have grey hair. For some crazy reason (that I will not understand until I am a mom myself) she would say that every one of them was worth it. A mother’s love knows no limits; no lengths are too far for a mom to stretch for her children.

The Kiel Girls

She raised such sweet, little angels!

My mom has been a greater help to me in the last 5 years than she will ever know. My ‘adult’ life has gone nothing like the way either of us had planned yet she has taken it in stride. Last year she opened her home to me when I had a Master’s degree, no job, and a car payment. Today she is happy for me to still be under her roof. I am thankful that she recognizes that I am doing my best to be on my own but for reasons that we do not know or understand, God still has me here.

 Diplomas x Three!!!

Ever the planner, mom had us three in cap and gown all at once!

 

I am also incredibly thankful that my mom knew the Lord from a young age. I cannot imagine living life without His influence and hand guiding my family. I know that there are many nights that she doesn’t sleep a wink for praying for me or my siblings.

Thank you, Mom! I love you so much.