Mother's Day. Fatima. Helping other moms at the playground.

Project 365 * 4
Day 496

Mother's Day

     It was a busy day, but a very fun one. We had Sue, Steph, Mario, and Mario's parents, Fatima and Jeff, over for dinner. The kids were so happy to see everyone, and it was awesome to catch up and spend some time with the ones we love. I'm so blessed to have so many wonderful mothers in my life. And I'm honored, truly honored, to be called a mother myself. It is the greatest blessing in my life. The greatest gift I've ever received. The gift of my children. I am constantly learning from them. I'm constantly growing because of them. And I'm never in need of love, hugs, kisses, or cuddles. Thankful for a beautiful day with them.

52 People I Love

     I love Fatima. She is truly an awesome woman. She is always giving gifts. At Christmas time, there is always a gift for Matt and I, and for our kids from Fatima and Jeff. She never forgets us. She loves her family. And because Mario is Steph's husband, that makes us family. I loved watching her play with Adelyn and Tobin today. I especially loved watching Fatima and Addy color together. I wish I had it on video. So cute! I just love Fatima as a person. She's sweet. She's giving. She's caring. And best of all, we understand each other. She loves dull, dreary, rainy days just like I do. She loves the cold and despises the heat just like I do. It's always nice to have someone who understands the way I feel about the rain, the cold, and the heat. And today, she brought little mother's day gifts for me. A beautiful hydrangea to plant, and some little treats from Brazil and Trader Joe's. I just love Fatima's sweet heart. I love her gentle spirit. I'm blessed to call her family. I'm blessed just to know her.

52 Kind Things

     Being a stay at home mom can be lonely. I know that whenever there's a day I can't hang out with Patty, I can't stop talking when Matt comes home. So, this week, I made it a point to really talk to other moms at the playground. I asked them questions. I listened to their stories. I helped them. Especially the moms with more than one kid. I know how hard it can be when one kid wants to do one thing, and the other wants to do another thing. It almost always ends in a tantrum from the one kid who didn't get to do their thing. If a mom was helping their kid go down the slide, I would say, "oh, I can do it," as they were rushing over to give their other kid a push on the swing. Also, whenever a kid didn't want to give up their swing  to let one of my children swing, I just distracted my kids with other things. I've been there before...at the playground with both of my kids in the swings, some family comes up with a baby, and I ask Addy if she will give the baby a turn in the swing. Addy screams, "NOOOOOOOOOO!" I try to get Tobin out to give the baby a turn. Screams, kicks, and punches. A battle ensues. I never win. And neither do my kids. I am usually doing the walk of shame back to my house with both my kids kicking and screaming the whole way home. I've been there, mom at the playground. Oh, I've been there. This week, if the swings were occupied by happily swinging children, and my kids wanted to swing, I improvised. We used the big kid swings. We played chase. We played kitchen using wood chips and dirt. It was exhausting. But I did it. Little acts of kindness sometimes go the longest way. I'm hoping my small, little acts of kindness helped a few other fellow moms this week.

     Thankful for a wonderful weekend. Thankful for an awesome Mother's Day. Thankful for my awesome gift from Matt and the kids. A special cloth that always stays cold. For me, it is the equivalent of Matt giving me solid bars of gold for Mother's Day. A cloth that always stays cold. Always!?! I've been using it all day, and I freaking love it! Thankful to have mothers to celebrate. Thankful to be a mother. Thankful for Fatima and her kind heart. Thankful for the opportunity to be kind at the playground this week. Thankful for my beautiful children. Thankful for a very fine day. Thankful that I now get to go lay in bed and watch Dr. Quinn, or It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Thankful for so, so many things to be thankful for.

Roxy was cuddling with some of Addy's babies, and when Addy snatched them away, I told her that it wasn't very nice of her to treat Roxy that way. I'm guessing she started feeling guilty about it, because this is how we found Roxy in the kitchen. Adelyn said, "I made Roxy real comfortable."