Happy Birthday to my Hero!!!

Today, December 5, is my Mom's birthday. My Mom is officially my hero, especially as I get a little older and am married with a baby. My Mom always amazed me at how sweet and submissive she is to my dad. You guys know my dad--he is a great man of God, and I think to be that way you have to be a little "intense". He is a visionary! And Mom? She just hangs on for the ride with a smile. When I would be pulling my hair out and screaming, she's calm and collected and being the wife that God wants each one of us to be. I hoped that when I got married I would be like her. Well, let's just say that I'm still working on that part. You think it would be easy to submit and reverence (that's the part I have to work on!). Well, when I got married, I had even more respect for her! And I have an easy going, laid back husband who helps me all the time around the house and with the baby. My dad wasn't really into that and my mom still did it all without complaint. I'm not saying it was bad that my dad didn't really do that--just some guys don't and it's not a bad thing!

So then I got pregnant. My Mom's pregnancies were not too bad, but still, she did it 9 times full term and 4 times before she miscarried. And each time you are tired, your back bothers you, you're uncomfortable. And yet, if she didn't look pregnant, you would have never known because she didn't complain about that either. Wow! I realized what a trooper she was for over a decade that she carried babies in her womb!

My Mom got to be here for the birth of Brooklynne. I don't know what I would have done without her gentle support for me during that day and the 2 weeks afterwards that I was recovering. When I was in labor, I remember looking up at her and saying, "I can't believe you did this 9 times!" No drugs, no epidural. What a woman!

I love my Mom for all the times she took me shopping and talked to me about my personal problems. I love her for the times that I got up early enough to see her reading her Bible and kneeling to pray. I love her for the times I was awake enough to hear her on the treadmill downstairs, disciplined enough to exercise almost every day. I love her for the many times I saw her and my dad "sporting" :) in the kitchen or anywhere in the house, because I knew how much they love each other. I love my Mom for her quiet little way about her. I love her for the times she listened to my petty little problems and gave me really good wisdom. I love her for for keeping the house tidy, doing the laundry, cooking the meals, and all the come along with that. I love her for giving me a good education and for being diligent with homeschooling. I love her for so much more and I am almost in tears to think of how much my Mom sacrificed for me, and still does each day.

I love you so much Mom, for the godly example of a Christian woman that you are to me.

Happy, Happy, Happy Birthday!