Talents and moms that are awesome.

The other day I was walking into WalMart (my sanctuary) with my girls and I saw a mom calming her crying baby who was still in her car seat. She was giving her a bottle or something. And it occurred to me, which it has many times, (but this time was different for some reason) that moms are so awesome. Moms are so different. You have working moms, stay-at-home moms, moms that run marathons, moms that let their kids watch too much tv (that is me), moms that to activity after activity with their kids (that is NOT me), moms that take their kids out to eat too much, moms that seem to have a spotless house (that is definitely not me), single moms, married moms, divorced moms, the list is so long. There are a LOT of different kinds of moms, but the one thing we have in common is that we are generally working our behinds off and doing the best we can. And I love the differences that we all bring to the table. The other thing that we have in common is that we love our kids. Sometimes I feel I am too judgmental and I need to chillax. I don't want people to judge me for what I do or do not do. And I extend that same courtesy to all moms. Rock on moms. I love you all.

I was talking to a few moms a while back and one has kids ranging in age form about 15 to 9 and she remarked about how she didn't like the young child age (the stage that I'm in now). And I was so glad to hear that. I was glad to hear that it got easier for her. I had people tell me to enjoy the young age because as they get older they just get an attitude. But I really have enjoyed how my son has gotten older and how I can relate to him more. He is only 5, but I can feel him learning to be more logical. I kind of think I'm an old soul, meaning even when I was 15 I was really a 40 year old.

To change the subject. Recently in our ward a young man entered the MTC. His mom's facebook picture is of them hugging for what I assume was the last time at the MTC. You can feel the love they have for each other. The other day I got mad at my kids (unprovoked) and I apologized to my son. I stood him up on a stool and gave him a hug. He was about my height and I could see him as an older young man, matured, ready to make his own decisions but still wanting to rely on his mom. We have a great influence on our kids and it is an amazing power. One that is fairly daunting and intimidating, but at the same time refreshing and empowering. We are raising the next generation of moms and dads, leaders and followers (which both have important roles in society). I've always felt that I was a good follower. I don't like to lead. I don't want to be in the spotlight. I've found the value in people that do what they are asked and see the value in respecting authority (when the authority figure is to be trusted). I want to instill in my kids a couple things that I think I've mentioned here before, things that my uncle learned and attributed his aquiring of those skill to his father as his dad was dying. He said, "Dad, there are two things you taught me: how to work and how to mind." What a wonderful tribute!