maman. mom. umma. mother.

i know i said in my previous post that my next post would be about my new niece. but i haven't spoken to my sister again since 30 minutes after she gave birth, and i just don't have enough details (or picures!) to share. so be looking out for a post about my emma in the near future.

this post is dedicated to mamas everywhere. i am ALL ABOUT mother's day. mostly because chris makes every great effort to make mother's day as special a day as humanly possible for me. i love him. tomorrow we have a day of big family fun planned. breakfast with his mom in the morning, church in the later morning (to see a bunch of superspecial babies get dedicated!), and then dinner and a suns game game at chris' dad's house. i don't know what chris has planned for me, present-wise, but i know that there is a card involved that chris tried to get lily to 'secretly' sign after teethbrushing time tonight. he had the card hidden in his shorts when he walked into the room with lily, and she kept wanting to show it to me. 'i draw a heart mom! dad, give it to mom! i draw heart! dad!' she was not happy that chris was hiding her art work. there are no secrets with 3 year olds. it's awesome.

anyhoo, if you are reading this and you are a mom, i just want to say- YOU ARE AMAZING. whether you adopted a baby, or birthed a baby through your girly bits, or via c-section, or via surogate mother, whatever the circumstance of your motherhood may be- you are a mother, and that makes you incredible. motherhood is crazy, and is a million times harder than i ever imagined it could ever be. all that giving and giving and giving- it's kind of exhausting! you give of all of your time, your personal space, your food, your sleep. your comfort, and more! like i said before, you are amazing.

if you are reading this and you have a mama, you need to be thankful. give the woman who raised you a call, a hug, $5 to buy a stiff drink to celebrate the day. i am really more and more in awe of my own mom with every new phase i enter into with my own kids. meals usually involve at least one small battle, and sleep... well, you know my tales of woe with sleep. but my mom is incredible. how did she raise 5 crazy kids who were born within 5 years of each other???? (twins! please Lord, not me too...) when we were in vegas on our big family trip a few months ago, us adults were sitting around, tired, after the kids had fallen asleep. there were only 3 kids between the 6 adults represented there, and they were running us ragged! and we realized that in two years, with jeehon's new baby, and with my future-not-conceived (read: I AM NOT PREGNANT!), we would have 5 kids in the same time frame as my mom, but between two seperate families. i don't know how my mom did it. but somehow she did. she is amazing.

if you are a man, and you are reading this, and you have a wife who is a mother, say thank you. every day. don't just think it. i know a lot of you are thankful. but you need to say it! gifts, flowers, bling are just cherries on top. the words are the thing. they are priceless. (it costs you nothing! but it will get you so much!)

and if you are reading this, and you are not a mom, but you are trying and trying, and want so badly to be a mom- drop me an e-mail. i would love to pray for you!

thanks to all the moms out there that i know. whether you are mothering me (i have my mom and two mother-in-laws, and a grandmother who dotes on me like no other! how blessed am i?!?!?), or are mothering with me (you women know who you are and i LOVE YOU all so much!!!!!), you make me a better mother. and i hope you have a happy happy day.