I am blessed to be a Mother...

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms I know who are reading this post! Two days late, I know, but it's the thought that counts right? Besides my own mother, I can think of many, many "older" and younger moms out there who I admire and love. In the words of Elder Ballard, "There is no role in life more essential and more eternal than that of motherhood." The ways that my mom has shaped my life are countless and I will forever be grateful for the sacrifices that she has made for her children. Gracias mami por tu ejemplo.

My mom was pregnant with me when this picture was taken...too bad we can't see her belly!

I always dreamed of being a wife and a mother...I always envisioned myself being sealed in the temple to a worthy priesthood holder and I have been blessed to have that happen in my life. Then I envisioned myself as a mother. I have to say that what I thought motherhood would be like doesn't come close to the reality of my role now. Being pregnant, giving birth and now raising my two children have been the most humbling, refining and rewarding experiences I have ever gone through in my life. Brielle and Braden have changed my life for the better! I never thought it would be possible to love and care for another human being so deeply as I do for them. Before I had kids I often wondered how it could be possible to love your children equally...now I know...yes...I'll be the first to admit that as a mother I have felt incredibly inadequate and frustrated at times but I have also experienced the deepest feelings of happiness and charity. I now understand more fully why through having our own families we are perfected and why this is the plan. I loved Elder Ballard's recent talk "Daughters of God". What a blessing we have to have inspired leaders that know what we need to hear and this talk was EXACTLY what I needed to hear. I have learned many things these last two years of motherhood and I have forcefully realized my many flaws!!! I am deeply grateful to have the opportunity in this life to be a mom and I'm sure grateful for the laughter and joy that Brielle and Braden bring to our home!

A few quotes from Elder Ballard's talk:

"There is no one perfect way to be a good mother. Each situation is unique...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."

"It is crucial to focus on our children for the short time we have them with us and to seek, with the help of the Lord, to teach them all we can before they leave our home."

"...recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in moments. There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction."

"Families need unstructured time when relationships can deepen and real parenting can take place. Take time to listen, to laugh, and to play together."

"Pray deeply about your children and about your role as a mother."

My attempt of taking a good picture with Brielle & Braden...I failed...all they wanted to do was play!!!

SIDE NOTE: Brielle, Braden and I went to Target this last Saturday and the worse thing happened...Brielle fell off the cart...I felt like a horrible mom and I was crying with her, I felt so terrible, the whole thing happened in half a second, it was VERY SAD. She was very cuddly after that...and I kept asking her "are you okay honey?" and she'd answer: "No mommy, I'm not okay" My poor little girl now has a bruise on her forehead!:(

Another Brielle Story...

I need to write this before I forget...I probably shouldn't have laughed but it was way too funny not to...yesterday Scott was helping me put the kids down for bed and Braden is usually very cooperative (for the most part) and Brielle on the other hand has a harder time cooperating. Both of them have been having a harder time going to bed at 8 because it is still light outside...anyway, we were all in our bedroom and Brielle was sitting on the computer chair pretending to type and this is the conversation Scott and Brielle had:

Scott: Brielle, it's time for bed, please get down and let's go to your bedroom.

Brielle: NOOOOOOOO, SCOTT, YOU GO BEDROOM BRIELLE'S!!!!!!!!! YOU GO SCOTT.

She's 2...what are we going to do when she's 15? She sure makes us laugh though...

Braden habla español!

He does this every time he hears Spanish! What a silly boy!!!

Mommy, Look it's Hannah Montana!

Two reasons for writing about this: First, I have an opinion and second, every time Brielle sees a picture of Hannah Montana at the store she enthusiastically lets me know, "MOMMY, LOOK IT'S HANNAH MONTANA!" If I didn't have kids I probably wouldn't know who the heck Miley Cyrus is...when her father was on Dancing with the stars I had NO CLUE who whatever his name was...Anyway, if you haven't heard, this 15 year-old girl posed semi-nude on Vanity Fair, which I never read and don't care to either. But the fact that Vanity Fair published the semi-nude, very sexy picture has been all over the news...the truth of the matter is that I could care less about what these dumb celebrities do with their stinking lives but it totally hit home because Brielle recognizes who she is and SHE IS TWO YEARS OLD!!!!!!! She doesn't even watch the show, she may have watched it once or twice. I watched the interview Glenn Beck did with the dad and he seemed like a decent guy and I was happy to see that a few of these celebrities and I shared a few values. I was in a way, relieved to see that not all people in Hollywood are shallow and have no values whatsoever. I thought, "wow good for them!" I was completely deceived! As a parent, if I saw that the photographer was getting too risque taking pictures of my 15 year-old Brielle I would have stopped the photo shoot and I would have done something about it!!!! But they just went with the flow like brainless human beings! Her mother and father were both there! Frankly, you can't blame the girl because she IS 15 years-old! It was the parents' responsibility! And it is obvious that the magazine and the photographer had their own agenda: to corrupt the image of what a 15 year old girl should look like!

My conclusion on the matter: the only people we can look up to as role models are our prophet, our families and the good people in our lives, that we KNOW would NEVER compromise their values. Obviously, Brielle right now has no clue what is going on, she only sees the flashy clothes she wears and the flashy, INTRUSIVE advertisements that are EVERYWHERE we go!!! It makes me so scared to realize that the world is in to get our children! It is such a real threat! I guess I have never felt it so strongly like this...The adversary is in to get us and he is using every tool he can to accomplish his purposes. We really need to safeguard our homes, because this is a battle for our lives and the lives of our children. It is so real! The only constant thing we have is the gospel. What would we do without it?

P.S. If you like Jack Johnson you may have heard his song "Good People" (which is playing right now) It definitely describes what I'm talking about.

Gray Hairs: The reality of my mortality!

The other night I was getting ready for bed, I was brushing my teeth and looking myself in the mirror when I saw a gray hair on my head. It wasn't too much of a surprise since I have found a few before. Let me emphasize the a few. I pulled the one I had found and started looking to see if I would find more...oh did I find more...I found 7!!! I couldn't believe my eyes. The reality of my mortality sank in (so dramatic I know...but I felt so old!!!). Then I came to bed, Scott was sleeping so I couldn't talk to anyone about it, so I just started to think. I started to think about aging and what it means and why we are so afraid of it. After all, aging is part of mortality and it is inevitable. It is happening to everyone! Why are we so afraid of aging, if with aging not only do we find gray hairs but we also become more mature, we see life in a more profound way, we gain the experience that we wished for when we chose to come to earth. Shouldn't I be grateful for the fact that the more years I gain of life the better I become? At least we hope that's the case!:) I guess, this topic has been on my mind lately because I will turn 28 this year and that is 2 years closer to 30. And to me that is BIG! 30! Oh man! I never thought that I would be so afraid of a number!!! But I keep asking myself why? Why am I so afraid of aging? I guess I have acquired the worldly mentality that I want to have a nice figure and I don't want all the things that happen to our bodies with age to happen to me...but when I was about 8 or 9 I remember looking at my grandparents and thinking they were the most beautiful people...I loved their white hair and I loved looking at the wrinkles on theirs hands and faces...is that just weird that I noticed those things? I remember both of my grandfathers being in love with their beautiful white haired wives and I never ever remember them complaining about what age had brought to their physical bodies. The same goes for both of my parents. My conclusion on aging is the obvious one, I just have to embrace it. Of course it is easier to embrace the wisdom that comes with aging more than the gray hairs that I found the other night.