For Moms Everywhere...

 When the day is different than you thought it would be...

May your day bring peace and mercies in ways you never expected.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms, the most deserving of all,

My Love,
Jane

Choosing Joy this Mother's Day

 

Choosing Joy today as we walk out the grief...

Honoring a Mother's love the best way we know how, by holding those we love a little closer today!

May your day be filled with more joy and love than is humanly possible,
My Love, Always,
              Jane

A Mother's Day Prayer

 Beautiful words... Gentle Inspiration from Kay Warren:

"Father, What a beautiful day to remember and celebrate mothers.

We are in awe when we stop and think about the power women have to imprint the lives of the children placed in their care. What a privilege! What a responsibility!

God, thank you for the mothers you gave us. We’re thankful for the ways they shaped us in healthy, positive ways, and we forgive them for their mistakes. We choose to focus on the fact that you used them to create us and give us life.

Thank you for the embracing arms of the women who weren’t our mothers but who loved us like we were their own.

Be near to those longing to be a mom, those grieving the loss of a child, and those missing estranged children; we trust them and their future to you.

God, for those who are in the midst of mothering right now—
give them courage to make hard decisions;
give them tough skin so that they can resist the pressures of our culture to compromise godly values;
give them physical energy and stamina to outlast even the busiest teenager;
give them wisdom beyond their own ability to know when to listen and when to speak;
give them faith to steer their children to a personal and vibrant faith in Jesus.

Please give all mothers joy in shaping the lives of their children, hope in their dark days, and above all, love that is willing to sacrifice.

We love you, Father! Amen"

Happy Mother's Day to each one,
Trusting your day has been filled with tender mercies
and sweet gifts to fill your heart.

My Love, Always,

                   Jane

This Mother's Day...

Falling somewhere into the in-between today...

Celebrating with joy a mother's day that finds my heart full, watching our family grow and flourish... a son and daughter who bring delight to this mama and the grand-babies that absolutely light up my days.

And in the middle of the joy, a quiet tug pulls me to the world of remembrance, an ache in the same full heart, a missing for Mom that draws my attention to the memories that fight for the joy on a day like today...

Her generous kindnesses. her contagious laugh, her mouth-watering pot roast dinners, those crazy-perfect girls-getaway trips, the warmth of her hug, her very presence in a room, that smile, her hand on mine... oh, my heart...

She is still so missed.  And I'm learning that days like today are okay.  We're somehow falling into the in-between.

A sweet celebration that's quieter now, a joy that is richer for the love we've known, a day of remembering the moms that are no longer with us, tears mingling with the smiles..

We're living this Mother's Day with a foot in the past and a heart tugging us into the future.

It is our new normal... our life in-between... the deep heritage of our past mixed with the legacy-living work of the now, pointing us surely into the overwhelming beauty of our tomorrows.

May you feel held close this day... no matter where you are in this journey.

Happy Mother's Day with Love,

Always,

Jane

Mother's Day Reflections...

This... Thoughts from a mother's heart... So beautifully said... Words of truth...

Being a Mother of Kids Who Can Die Young

Most of us cannot imagine being a mother who could lose her child.   Ann shares what it is like to be a mother of children with serious health conditions.  Where hugging a son good-night means knowing there is a 1 in 20 chance he may die in his sleep.  Where learning that their tiniest daughter... born with half a heart, must wait for a heart transplant... and she begs for More Time... breathing in the moments and memorizing each face with a tender fierceness. 

Ann's post is poignant and touches a chord that can resonant with each of us.  For as she explains, "The shadow of death is a strange friend: it wakes you to savouring life and every minute."

When we walked with mom through her pancreatic cancer journey we too found that the moments became so much more precious the faster they dwindled.  The inconsequential faded away and our time together focused on the only things that mattered... deeply loving one another.  I am beyond blessed to have had that time with her.  Perhaps that is why Ann's story touches me so much...


“Getting to love you makes me the luckiest.
Getting to witness your brave gives me strength to bear whatever comes.
Getting to receive your grace makes me only want to give more.
And getting to be with you, ever, whenever, however, makes everything worth it — because you are worth everything.”
                                                        ~ Ann Voskamp

Celebrating the seconds and minutes and hours and weeks, and prayerfully, the years that we get to love the ones given to us... It is the most awesome of privileges to embrace each moment, knowing how fleeting the time can be...

When we know we only get so much time — all our sacrifices are made into gifts that we get."  ~ Ann Voskamp

And loving is the sweetest gift of all...

In Grace tonight,

Love, Always,

Jane

You make saying Goodbye so hard...

Winnie the Pooh had it right.

Some people make it so hard to say Goodbye...

If you're celebrating this Mother's Day with a hole in your heart, perhaps missing a mom gone too soon or missing the child you never got to hold in your arms, then know that you are not alone.

For the child in us missing our moms,

For the moms in us missing our babies...

Might we lift up hands of gratitude

even as tears fall,

How lucky we are to have had someone

in our lives that made

saying Goodbye so hard!

Missing and Loving 

go hand in hand...

Wishing all the Moms out there

the Happiest of Mother's Days.

May the Laughter be sweet

and the Smiles be tucked forever in our hearts!

My Love, Always,

                   Jane

A Mother's Day Thought

 

So true, this Mother's Day and every day since we said goodbye...

Flowers for Mom

 

A day of remembering...

 

 

 

...of grieving still...

 

 

 

... of missing that forever smile...

 

 

 

A day of Sweet Gratitude for the love she lavished on us all...

 

Happy Mother's Day Mom

Because of you, our lives have been changed for the better.

 

Missing you every single day,

Loving you Always and Forever,

 

     Jane

 

It Takes a Village...

Mother’s Day… My heart reaches for the voice and touch that has been gone too long… a longing that sighs deep and aches hard.  Does it get easier?  51 years of her mothering and it was not enough.  Not near enough.  Mom’s gift was infinite in scope, and her very presence is missed endlessly. 

And I’ve come to learned thru her example that it does indeed take a village… of super women moms… to raise a child. And I am so blessed that mom opened the door and invited some amazing women in to help mother me through the years.  She had an intuitive wisdom and confidence to know when she needed to step aside and let others take a hand in my raising and when she needed to take my hand to lead me straight. 

There is gratitude overwhelming for the way she loved me and shaped me and grew me.  And let’s face it, raising kids is a task of monstrous proportions.  If it’s not the terrible twos, it’s the last minute 5^th grade science projects or the 8^th grade dance dress that is all wrong or of course the tyranical teenage angst ad nauseum that would take pages and pages to recount (but let’s not, J it is still a somewhat touchy subject!)

No wonder we have Mother’s Day… and honestly, is one Day of Celebration really long enough?!

Looking back on my life, I see clearly the many, many women who loved me in tangent with mom and shaped me into who I am today:

There was Ruth, neighbor-friend, honorary aunt, who traded babysitting with mom, played a mean game of hopscotch, talked fluent Barbie-ese, read mountains of books and laughed joyously…

There was Grandma Inga and Aunt Di who planned glorious summer vacations for us on the dairy farm, building forts in the hayloft, teaching the art of handmilking and bottle-raising baby calves, taking endless picnics in the woods and throwing us on a tractor and caution to the wind…

There was Grandmother Meier, our city-grandma, who taught a love of history and travel and fine dining, taxi-riding and Chicago museums, and condo-living on the shores of Lake Michigan, letting tiny ones sit at her fancy table and eat peanut butter sandwiches off of her beautiful china, her smile echoing mom’s…

And Mrs. Ray, youth-leader wife-extraordinare, who listened to the woes of a broken teen-age heart so many times, pouring the grace of Christ into my life thru the years, preparing me for the stretching and growing pains as God grew me into a young woman ready for a grown-up love…

For Leroy’s mom, sweet Millie, mom-in-law with love, who opened her arms with exuberance to a dewy-eyed bride of 19, needing to learn so many things!  Like cat-fish frying and pickle-canning, summer gardening and days of Mississippi River fishing… Loud family reunions and happy times around an overflowing dinner table….

And when jobs took us 1,000 miles away from these mom-angels, with my babies barely knee-high, God planted me in the midst of the most precious mom-mentors.

Like Mrs. Buchmeyer, the children’s first grade teacher who encouraged me to try my hand at room-mothering and then proceeded to become mother indeed to both me and the kids, wearing their hand-made clay jewelry gifts with pride and stepping in as surrogate grandma for birthdays and scrapped knees and tooth-fairy escapades.

Or Michelle, pastor’s wife, ladies ministry leader taking me under her wing and lavishing love and laughter over me and my children with abandon…

And through it all, mom was the constant.  Always there, sometimes physically with hugs and in person, other times a phone call away, the sound of her voice all the connection I needed.

Somewhere along this mothering journey, she became my best friend, a confidante of the heart, my cheerleader and sounding board, understanding without words, sharing adventures and jokes, and lumps in our throats.

I have been given an extraordinary gift in my mom.  And I never understood it until I had children of my own.  When that downy head and tiny, precious baby mine was laid first in my arms, the love bonded tighter than sure.  I remember that powerful flow of ferocious love that beat loud for all to hear… this one is mine, I will protect and love and cherish always.

And I never wanted to let them out of my sight.  Not very practical, true… but this mama had control issues…smile. I have learned to loosen the strings little by little because really, we just can’t do it all.

It’s true!  Us moms.  We just can’t do it all.  For our kids.  All the time.  Always right.  (Sorry to disillusion you on Mother’s Day and all, but it’s true…honest…)

And the reason I know this is true is because Mom modeled it all my life.  She mothered us with gracious love and was able to step back and allow so many other incredible women to come alongside and share the load.  And now I am walking it out with my own kids and grand-girls…In the midst of a pack of amazing angel-women super moms.

I am beyond humbled by the gift of other women around me who I know will leave their mark, who will pick up where I leave off, and who will be the hands and feet of Christ to my kids, a gift I know I’ll never be able to repay.

And so on this Mother’s Day evening, my heart is full.    

Mom knows…

Dear Mom,

Happy Mother's Day.  I never dreamed in a million years that you wouldn't be here to hug on Mother's Day.  You know that it's been 5 months since I've heard your voice or squeezed your hand or saw your smile?   I miss you like crazy and there are days I just want to pick up the phone and talk for hours...

Dad is getting up every day and making it through.  It's hard.  He misses you more than words can say.  We stopped by the columbarium today and I think if there was a way, he'd move heaven and earth to bring you back.  He loves you so...

Did you know that Travis finally made it through the Fire Fighter Academy and has been hired locally?  He's so thrilled and he looks so good in his uniform.  Watch over him as he dives into danger, please?  He is such a good daddy.  Autumn and Aubree light up every time he comes into the room.  Autumn turned two in April and Aubree just turned 4 months.  I wish you could have met her.  Little Aubree is an angel, sweetest chubby cheeks and wide innocent eyes.  She snuggles up close and has the most adorable smile.  You would have just loved her to pieces...

Katie and Jordan celebrated their first anniversary a few months back and we all reminisced about their beautiful Wedding at Sea on the Cruise to No Where.  You were there.  What memories we made.  I can almost feel your arms around me as we hugged after the ceremony.  You were there encouraging, supporting and cheering us on as we struggled to turn the potential disaster into a celebration that will always be remembered.  And you were right, in the end love wins out everytime.  It did, and Katie and Jordan are still head over heels in love.  You would smile to watch them...

And me, I'm doing okay.  You didn't raise a ninny!   I know you want us to move on, to live life full and in color.  But... just every now and then, we wallow around in our grief.  It's okay, we don't stay there long, but oh, do we miss you.  I want to feel your hug, to hear your laugh, to walk through your front door and smell your pot roast and sit down to a big family dinner...

I cherish those moments and love the life you made for us.  As our family grows and we with it, I am learning more and more by the example you gave.  I love my daughter and granddaughters more than a heart can express, and am now the Mom and Memaw that they look up to.  Whisper in my ear just what to do to, to love them as you loved me...

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Love you always and forever...

                      Jane