I love being a . . .

I love being a Mom.

Since it’s Mother’s Day, I’d like to share something I wrote a long time ago about my experience of being a Mom. I shared this with my congregation as part of the Mother’s Day service back in 2002. I shared my story of being a Mom of young children. Other Moms spoke of their experience of children going off to college, and being a Grandmother. It was a lovely.

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As a Mom of a one year old and a three year old (now 14 and 16), I recall the early physical demands of motherhood quite vividly.

Let’s start from the very beginning – getting pregnant was fun.

Next, was finding out – I was pregnant.  The good news stirred up a fury of emotions – WOW!!, Robert, I love you so much, who do you want to call first, and oh my goodness, what are we in for?  Although I had not yet met this baby, it was a combination of my husband and me.  This joint project was nothing compared to all the other previously thought as important projects we’ve worked on in the past, like buying a house, picking dining room furniture, or selecting a new paint color for our bedroom.

The next step was actually being pregnant and having a baby; another person, another being, someone I’ve never met before, grow inside my body.  This wasn’t just for a few days, or weeks.  This was for forty weeks!!  There aren’t many things I’ve done in my life that I’ve done every day, every minute, for forty weeks straight?!!?  This little baby was going to grow and grow and grow within my body.  This meant I was going to grow larger and larger and larger!!

The next physical demand of being a Mom was of course childbirth.  This had scared me for years.  In fact, it scared me so much sometimes, I didn’t know if I wanted children.  Afterall, this baby inside my body was going to . . . . . .   you already know how this all works.  I’m not going to go into any details here, but we made it.  My two children and myself are all healthy.

I chose the next physical experience of motherhood.  I nursed each child for one year.  This was an incredible experience.  I held my babies in my arms as they got nourishment from my body.  My body was producing milk made especially for these little babies.  It was quite a bonding experience.

Now that I’ve got my little baby girl turning into a toddler, and my little toddler turning into a little boy, I’ve got so much on my mind!!  As a child, I thought all you grown-ups had everything already figured out.  I didn’t realize there were so many questions to ponder.  For instance:

• What if I say to my child ‘It’s time to brush your teeth’ and my child replies with ‘No’ again, again, and again. What am I supposed to do?
• What if my children only want to eat hotdogs and chicken nuggets? How am I supposed to get my children to eat healthy foods?
• This one is really tricky – how do I teach my children everyone is born with inherent worth and dignity, but ‘don’t talk to strangers’? If anyone has any words of wisdom on this, please feel free to share with me.

I feel I’m fortunate to learn and implement a new lesson early in my mothering years.  You may have heard it before, thought it was a neat idea, but found it too difficult to implement.  I’m implementing it from the start!!  The lesson is to take time out for me, take a break, and to take care of myself.  I’ve seen many other women work so hard to do everything for everyone in the family; children first, husband next, and herself last.  This leaves her exhausted, worn out, frustrated, angry and sometimes lonely.  I’m managing life differently.  I take care of myself first, my husband Robert second, and my children next.  This makes sense to me.  Before I met my husband, I was ME!!  Why should I abandon ME?  Afterall, he fell in love with ME!!  Before I met my children, I was ME and Robert’s wife.  I’m not going to discard those relationships!  Now, I embrace life as ME, Robert’s wife, and a mommy of two small ones.

My children keep me busy.  I’m observing them in absolute awe as they take their first steps, act in kindness with one another, put their toys away without being asked, use their manners without prodding, catch a ball, sing a whole song, speak their very first words, teach me something new, clear their places from the dinner table, and more.  I’m looking forward to all the new experiences motherhood brings.

A few months ago, I was asked about the things I do for a living as part of a questionnaire.  This is what I wrote:

As a stay at home Mom, I do lots of things:

I play on the floor and build towers with blocks.  I read stories about lions, tigers, and bears.  I swing on swings in the sunshine.  I climb on the playground, even though I’m a little big for some of it.  I play in the sink with water and bubbles (and some dishes too).  I plan menus for fine dining for the Lowe family.  I bake great chocolate chip cookies, make awesome soups, and try out new recipes regularly.  I manage the food in the refrigerator (throw out the old and buy the new).  I feed the young at the 8 am, 12 noon, and 6 pm feedings (it would be cool to feed whales, dolphins, or bears, but I feed the Lowe family – they’re cool too).  I provide clean, neat, and dry attire for the children.  I plan fun things for the Lowe family to do. 

I experience love so intensely, it’s absolutely amazing.