Simple Joy

Yesterday was Mother's Day and it was such a beautiful day.  I saw many posts on facebook and blogs about how Mother's Day can be very painful for women... women who have lost their mother, women who have lost their children, women who want to be mothers... the list went on about women hurt on Mother's Day.

I don't mean to discredit any of what those sweet woman are feeling, and I do understand how certain days and holidays can stir certain feelings... but I have to admit, I have always felt great joy on Mother's Day.  Mother's Day is a day that thus far with which, I feel incredibly grateful, I have not struggled.

I love being my mother's daughter and have always enjoyed surprising her and spoiling her as much as possible, usually from a distance, on Mother's Day.  I am so fortunate that she is still walking the earth and my best friend.

Then, Hubby and I have never struggled with infertility.  I did spend years wishing I was a mother... but they were years before I met my husband.  They were the years that I wondered if I would ever meet a man I could love and would love me back and that we would want to raise a family together.  Those years were harder for me than any others -- wondering if my dream of being a wife and mother would ever come true.

Once Hubby and I were married, we happily enjoyed some Mother's Days celebrating our own mothers, and enjoying our animal-babies.

Then, before we knew it, we were expecting our first baby.

As I said, we have been so fortunate not to struggle with infertility, and we do not take that for granted at all because we have innumerable friends who we know have spent years and tens of thousands of dollars dealing with infertility issues.  If anything, we have had the challenge of more children a little more quickly than we anticipated -- truly a wonderful challenge to have.

But I digress... yesterday's Mother's Day was full of such joy.

I will admit, sometimes I struggle with Mother's Day because I have an idea in my head of how I would like to feel appreciated or celebrated... and the day did start a little rocky when I was up making our daughter breakfast in bed (that's right... no bnb for this mama this Mother's Day) and I had been up for several hours before anyone mentioned Mother's Day.

But, as we hustled out the door for church, I realized that I like getting the kids ready and I wouldn't want Hubby to take that task from me.  I loved choosing what they would wear on a special Mother's Day Sunday.

We worked in the nursery at church, which meant I got to bless other mothers by watching their babies and giving them a little time to worship with their husbands without the distraction of children.  Plus, I got to play with my own twins during that time.

The church was so sweet to hand out flowers to women for Mother's Day, and it was so sweet that the ushers came and found me in the nursery to deliver my rose.  I shouldn't, but I know would have felt left out if I had come out of the nursery to see all the other mothers with flowers, and then I would sort of have to go search for my own.  That wasn't the case at all.  Several ushers made sure I had my rose. 

It was very sweet that Tracey was given a rose in her classroom, and Hubby prompted her at one point to give it to me.  I questioned Tracey if she was supposed to have the rose, because I wanted to make sure she hadn't accidentally taken it from someone, and then Hubby said, "Well, I think she is supposed to give it to someone.  Tracey, are you supposed to give that rose to anyone."  Tracey very frankly said, "No.  It's my flower."

Which, I have to admit, I think is adorable.  Tracey LOVES flowers, and it doesn't at all surprise me that felt so incredibly special, grown up, and feminine to receive a flower at church, and there was no way she would be giving it to anyone else.  Also, I do hope she eventually desires to be a mother herself, and so it was a beautiful representation of the circle of life -- flowers to mothers, flowers to future mothers.

Then, we came home for some lunch, some playtime, and Mama opening a few cards and a gift Tracey made at school (her thumb print on a keychain).

Everyone got a nap at the same time (which was a Mother's Day gift in and of itself).  Everyone played together after the nap.

Then, we went out for a very early (perfect time for the kids) family dinner buffet.

Despite lots of food choices, everyone seemed to like the crab legs best of all, and Hubby and I had a full-time dinner job just cracking crab legs as fast as our kids could eat them.

At dinner Hubby gave me another Mother's Day card from the kids and him, and then he confessed that he bought it that morning while we were at church.  He had slipped away from the nursery for a few minutes and apparently run to the supermarket next door to buy a very last minute Mother's Day card.  He said it was slim pickins, but I would have never known because he chose a card that was perfect from our kids.

I have to admit, it means so much to me that he took the time to run and buy a Mother's Day card even though it was the eleventh hour.  It would have been so easy for him to think... well, I missed this year... but he didn't and it was the sweetest thing.

After dinner... normal bedtime routine -- baths, bed, clean up the kitchen.

But the truth is, our usual routine, when Hubby is home, is wonderful -- the perfect way to end the day.  When Hubby is not home, it's a little crazier, but having him home at bedtime (still feeling the wake of graduate school absences, and end of the year craziness at his work) also feels like a Mother's Day gift.

Honestly, it wasn't an earth-shattering Mother's Day where I was pampered... but it was such a wonderful day.

I really hope I can hang on to this simple joy.