Happy Mother's Day!

It's been exactly one year since I started my "Mommy Blog" which has really turned out to be a great way to document the life of my beautiful daughter and the amazing experience it is to be a mom. Looking back, it is easy to see how much we both have grown this past year!

May 2007

April 2008

I'd have to say that being a mom has to be the coolest thing I have ever done. I absolutely LOVE it...even though I often talk about how hard it can be. :)

Here's a photo that Mike took - with no flash so he wouldn't wake up Natalie - as I was putting Natalie to sleep. This picture is one of my favorite, despite the poor quality. When I look at this picture I can see the "Mother" in me and I absolutely love it. I'm doing what I've always wanted to do - be a Mother.

The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new. ~Rajneesh

And now that I have a little taste of how much work goes into being a good Mother, I want to thank my Mother for all the work she did for me. It is amazing to me that she did all the work I have done thus far as a Mother x 7 (seven kids) over the past 40+ years! Wow. I'm so grateful for all the sacrifices that she has made in behalf of all her children. Thank You Mom!

The phrase "working mother" is redundant. ~Jane Sellman

I also want to thank my "other" Mother, Sally. She is an amazing Mother-in-law. And she is an even more amazing Grandma. She works so hard to do so much for us and I couldn't be more grateful to her. I don't know what I would have done without all the help she has given our family, especially after the birth of Natalie. You are incredible, Sally. Thank You!

Motherhood is priced of God, at price no man may dare to lessen or misunderstand.
~Helen Hunt Jackson

To all the mothers out there - keep up the good work! I know the more effort we put into the mothering of our children, the better this world as a whole will be. I absolutely believe that as a woman the most important thing you can do with your time and talents is to share them with your children and/or the children you come in contact with.

To Lead a Girl to Womanhood

Open her eyes
to the blessings around her
Show her that beauty and
goodness surround her.
Help her to trust in the future, not fear it.
Teach her that dreams are the winds of the spirit,
Guide her with wisdom and gentle persuasion
For she is God's pleasure
-His flower of creation.

- Author Unknown

Happy Mother's Day!