Yes, there are many good days!

I won't lie about it. I have had a very hard week. I have had many pity parties with just myself and a few with my mom. I grew up #8 of 9 children. All brothers, no sisters. You might think...How sad? Not really. I actually do have sisters. The sisters I have never took my clothes, never said an unkind word, or never pushed me around. My sisters came into my life one at a time as each of my brothers got married. I watched my sisters-in-law as they raised their own children and they made Motherhood look so easy. Maybe, I wonder, some women are just better at this than others. As my mom left my house the other day she said to me, "Beth, I am not going to sympathize with you. Motherhood is hard and you just have to be strong." As I have cried many times, wondering what it is that I am doing each day, I am reminded of how many mothers there are that do so much and no one sees the sacrifices made each day. My mom told me of my Grandma Wolfe, my dad's mom, and how her mother died when she was 16. She raised her younger brother and sister. She married my Grandpa at a young age and had her own family of 6. Two of her six children died early in life. My uncle Jimmy died in Vietnam and my uncle Pledger died in a car accident. I guess, I have to realize that life is hard and that everyday isn't going to be fun and games. What I am doing right now has meaning and purpose. I know there will still be times when I feel like I could not handle another thing on my plate, but hopefully with the continued support we can give one another as women and mothers, and with the tender mercies of the Lord, we can all feel our loads get lighter. After having all of these thoughts rushing through my head, about Motherhood, I just received an email from my mother-in-law that I will attach because I really liked it and I feel like it was another tender mercy.
> Invisible Moms
> It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of
> response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on
> the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking,
> 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'
> Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone,
> or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the
> corner,
> because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. The invisible Mom.
> Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this ? Can
> you tie
> this? Can you open this??
>
> Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a
> human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite
> guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order,
> 'Right around 5:30, please.'
>
> I was certain that these were the hands that once held
> books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa
> cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to
> be
> seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone!?
>
> One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating
> the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from
> a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed
> in. I
> was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well.
> It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty
> pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package,
> and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of
> Europe . I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read
> her inscription: 'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of
> what you are building when no one sees.'
>
> In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book and I would
> discover what would become for me, four life-changing
> truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the
> great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave
> their
> whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great
> sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was
> fueled by
> their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.
>
> A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came
> to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman
> carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the
> man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that
> will be covered by the roof, No one will ever see it. And the workman
> replied, 'Because God sees.'
>
> I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into
> place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you,
> Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one
> around
> you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on,
> no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You
> are
> building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will
> become.
>
> At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But
> it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the
> disease
> of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong,
> stubborn pride.
>
> I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great
> builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never
> see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The
> writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be
> built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice
> to
> that degree.
>
> When I really think about it, I don't want my son to
> tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom
> gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand
> bastes
> a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.'
> That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want
> him to
> want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his
> friend,
> to add, 'You're gonna love it there.'
>
> As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot
> be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that
> the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty
> that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.
>
> Great Job, MOM!

The ER!

Last night was interesting! I was standing at the dining room table folding some clothes when I saw AJ, who decided to run after TC, actually ran right into the corner of our dining room and hallway walls. It completely knocked him to the ground and AJ grabbed his eye and was screaming. I ran over to hold him and as I pulled his hands away from his face, I realized that he had a pretty deep cut right over the left eyebrow. We held a washcloth over the cut and TC ran to get Grandma and Grandpa, next door. We put a band-aid on the cut and took him to the emergency room. That was fun to sit in a hospital room with a 4 year old, who can't keep still and wanted to try and touch everything. He was so brave when it came time to stitch his laceration. They said he was better than anyone they have stitched up. That made AJ feel really good. He is now back to being a very active 4 year old. Only now we DO NOT RUN IN THE HOUSE! AJ did ask me yesterday if we could move the wall so he could run. Yeah, OK!!!

Are you ready for some Football?

Well, today was TC's second day of football practice. He is really enjoying it. I had to knock him around a few times a couple of weeks ago to prepare him for what would happen. It was kinda funny. I just didn't want him to come home crying because somebody ran into him and knocked him down or whatever. He actually looked forward to that part. I think he will do well. He catches the ball really well and runs pretty fast. Anyway, it should be fun to see all of these kids out there running the wrong way or tackling their own teammate. I think I will enjoy that part of it the most along with watching Dakota eat grass, AJ playing on the sidelines, and Jaxon just being the good baby that he is. As you can see in the picture, TC is playing it cool.

I have decided this week that I never want Steve to have a job where he has to travel. I know that many of you may think that I am a baby but I like having my husband here at night when I go to bed. I miss you baby and I hope you come home sooner than later. Also, I know that Steve will not be jealous but I so enjoyed my lunch at Red Lobster today. Yum, yum!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DRAN!

Dance, Dance,Dance!

I wish that I could have had the camera going just moments before this but this is all you get. Dakota just went for it when she turned the clock radio on. It made me laugh. AJ was a little gun shy when he saw me with the camera. We have poor video quality, so just excuse our cheap camera.

Jaxon Tyler Robinson

How is Jaxon? He is the perfect baby. He went to sleep at 11:00 last night and did not wake up until 9:45. He is a healthy 12 pounds and 6 ounces. Jaxon never fusses and I have hardly ever heard him cry. He doesn't spit up either. WHAT? I know, all of my other kids had eating disorders, I think. They would gulp their bottles down and then throw it all back up. Jaxon eats nice and slow and keeps everything down. That just goes to show you that it isn't anything mom does that makes the baby throw up, it has to be their makeup. Anyway, Heavenly Father knew that I couldn't handle any more stress in my life and knowing how demanding little Kota is, he blessed me with a sweet baby. Oh and yes, life is still hard!

DON"T ASSUME ANYTHING!

Well, It is TC's second day of 2nd grade. He seems to have enjoyed day one and loves his teacher. Apparently, Mrs. Burger lets you do "Anything." So now that things are one child quieter around here, AJ seems to have gotten more quiet also. I thought he had left to go to Grandma's house (stupid for always assuming) and about 20 minutes later I talked to G-ma and asked if AJ was over at her house. When she said no, I got worried because I couldn't see him outside from my back porch. My first thought was to call Marcie to see if he went over to her house. No one was home. Now I am really worried, so Dakota and I walked down to Derek and Marcie's house to check the pool (my greatest fear next to the pond). Thankfully they keep their gates locked, but you never know. He wasn't there and so I kept yelling for him everywhere. My mom asked me if he could have gone upstairs to take a nap. I thought, well yeah, he could have. So, I went up to his room and there in his bed, fast asleep was my precious little AJ. They are so beautiful when they are asleep and even more beautiful when you fear that you may not find them. Moral of the story is..... you know what they say about Assuming?

So Happy Together

well, i would have to say that last weekend was just great. steve and i had the opportunity to go to the atlanta temple to be with our family and celebrate the uniting of my niece, Rebekah and Jared Seely. it was so wonderful and Rebekah was so beautiful. i now have 3 nieces and 2 nephews married. does that make me sound old or what? steve also captured a picture of my "great" niece, Aspen. She is so adorable.

Way cute bows and way cool giveaway!

For those of you who have beautiful little girls with more hair than my little Dakota, you should go to Ashmorefamily.blogspot.com for a great giveaway. Check out her Bowhead Bows site also. I think they are so cute. I can't wait until Dakota has more hair.