Nothing says Mothers Day like....

SLEEP!! and that's what I got. Yesterday Miles got up with the kids who were all up by about 6:30....usually only Hudson gets up that early. At about 8 they left me here to sleep and went out to breakfast. Since I love going out to breakfast you would think I wouldn't want to miss out on a chance to do that, but given the chance to sleep, I chose sleep. Then I experienced something I haven't felt in 2 years.....what it feels like to just wake up when you are ready....which for me was 10:15. Ahhhhh.....

I also got a great assortment of pictures, crafts, poems, etc...that Camryn and Sadie made at school and church. The ones from Camryn were special this year b/c she wrote in her own words some of the things she loves about me and she gave me a coupon book that i can use for things like hugs and kisses.

Big excitement at our house this weekend has been our new pet turtle who we found crawling though our back yard. She's small and cute and named Millie. We just watch her....no touching.

Saturday we went to see Jenna get married (who is on our staff team). The highlight of the wedding for Sadie and Camryn was seeing their friend Anna who was a beautiful flower girl. As soon as they saw each other they started twirling and dancing outside. And what wedding reception these days doesn't have a chocolate fountain....which was conveniently a few steps away from our table.....and this was by the way one of the most beautiful wedding receptions I've ever been to. It was at the Carolina Hotel in Pinehurst, NC.

On the way to the reception we stopped to help some students who had a flat tire. Miles and Eric changed the tire.....

while Natalie and I stood and watched with the kids. Hudson got out and played with rocks....which i think would have entertained him for hours....

and Sadie and Anna picked up where they left off with the dancing....

and I don't know who took this picture of Hudson and me at the reception...

It was a great day! congratulations Jenna and Bobby! we love you and the wedding was beautiful!

Now, for more about Mother's day.....Being a mom is by far the best job I've ever had. And the hardest....but with big rewards....Even when they drive me crazy I try not to take for granted the fact that I have 3 healthy kids. Three very sweet, cute kids who teach me something new everyday. Lately I'm seeing that Camryn's personality mirrors mine and I find myself getting frustrated with things she does or won't do and I have to remind myself that she's like that b/c I am too (or was at her age) so I should understand and be patient as she grows and I can't force her to speed up growing into who she is. She's incredibly sweet and in her class at school she was voted the most Fair student. She really is fair whenever she's playing with Sadie. She likes to share and for things to be equal when sharing.

Sadie makes us laugh A LOT! She loves to entertain and put on a show and tell stories. I love when she uses her imagination to make up stories and act them out for me. Check out this picture. She has a bunch of chopsticks on the floor. It might just look like some chopsticks to you, but to her they are girls and every one of them has a name. I heard her making them all try to go potty and asking them if they wanted a snack. She did the same thing with some water bottles last week. Why play with Barbies and Polly Pockets when you have chopsticks....more for her imagination to work with.

She also continues to show her strong will. She likes to argue with me or Camryn about little things like the words to a song or how to spell a word and I think she knows that we are right but will continue to argue and try to get us to say that she is right. I don't think she really cares if she is right, but she just wants us to admit that she is. But I know she listens to my advice and cares what I think too. When she gets dressed in the morning if she comes in and asks me if her outfit matches and I say not really, she will say "yes it does" but then she will quietly go and change it. Tonight we were on the Compassion website choosing a child for Sadie to Sponsor and she would NOT let Camryn or me make any suggestions about who she should choose. If we would say something like "oh that girl has on a pretty dress"....Sadie would say "that is a shirt and skirt." But overall, Sadie is a little easier to deal with lately. She obeys more and plays really well with Camryn and she's even not as rough with Hudson as she used to be.

I love my kids and I think I'm one lucky mom to have them. I could write a lot about what Hudson is up to these days and I will another day.

Happy Mother's Day to all my Mom friends and especially to my mother and mother-in-law who are my most faithful blog readers. I love you all and I'm a better mom b/c of you.