Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms...

Some of my favorite readings about Mothers:

When God Created Mothers by Erma Bombeck

When the good Lord was creating mothers, He was in His sixth day of overtime when the angel appeared and said,"You're doing a lot of fiddling around on this one"

The Lord said "Have you read the specs on this order? She has to be completely washable, but no plastic; Have 180 movable parts...all replaceable; Run on black coffee and leftovers; Have a lap that disappears when she stands up; A kiss that can cure anything from a broken leg to a disappointed love affair; And six pair of hands"

The angel shook his head slowly and said "Six pair of hands? No way"

It's not the hands that are causing the problems," said the Lord "It's the three pair of eyes that mothers have to have."

"That's on the standard model?" asked the angel.

The Lord nodded. "One pair that sees through closed doors when she asks, "What are you kids doing in there?" when she already knows. Another here in the back of her head that sees what she shouldn't but what she has to know, and of course the ones here in front that can look at a child when he goofs up and say, "I understand and I love you," without so much as uttering a word."

"Lord," said the angel, touching His sleeve gently, " come to bed. Tomorrow----"

"I can't" said the Lord. "I'm so close to creating something so close to myself. Already I have one who heals herself when she is sick...can feed a family of six on one pound of hamburger...and can get a nine year old to stand under a shower."

The angel circled the model of a mother very slowly and sighed. "It's too soft."

"But tough!" said the Lord excitedly. "You cannot imagine what this mother can do or endure."

"Can it think?"

"Not only think, but it can reason and compromise," said the Creator.

Finally the angel bent over and ran his fingers across the cheek. "There's a leak," he pronounced. "I told you that you were trying to put too much into this model."

"It's not a leak, " said the Lord. "It's a tear."

"What's it for?"

"It's for joy, sadness, disappointments, pain, loneliness and pride."

A Mother's Prayer

Lord,

When they scribble on the walls, please help me to see a rainbow! And when I've said something a 100 times, please give the patience to say it a 100 more. And on those particularly annoying days when I tell them to act their age, please help me to remember they are! And while we're on the subject of age, Lord, when I begin to lose my temper, please help me to act mine! And through it all, Lord---the fingerprints and runny noses, messy rooms and unrolled toilet paper, destroyed things and broken knick knacks---please help me to remember this: Someday, these will be the days I will long to have back again!

Taking pictures with my Heart

It was an extraordinary moment at the end of an otherwise ordinary day. I was walking down the hallway of our home when I came upon the sweetest sight I had ever seen: my three year old son brushing his teeth. No, it wasn't the fact that Parker was brushing his teeth; it was what he looked like at that moment. With the aid of his well used footstool, he still had to stand on his tippy toes to barely see the mirror. Clad only in the his tiny white T-shirt and "big boy" underwear, the little muscles in his calves were clearly outlined. He looked so small, so innocent, and pure.

I froze in place. Looking on, I realized that someday soon that same precious little boy would probably be bigger than I was. He would be able to pick me up! So I willed time to stand still for a few marvelous moments while I soaked up that memory of what he looked like up on his tiptoes.

I thought of going to get my camera to capture the moment forever, but I couldn't bear to turn away. Instead, I did what mothers have been doing for centuries, I took a picture with my heart.