I love being a mom. Ever since I was a little girl I wanted to grow up and be a mom. That was always my one goal in life. I knew I wanted to have kids and stay home to raise them. By the time I was in college I also knew I wanted to homeschool my kids. So, to say that I love being the mom of Laura, Nate and Daniel is a massive understatement.
This is my 15th Mother’s Day. My, how the time does fly! Every mother with more than one child can attest to the fact that each child is unique, and I celebrate the differences that make my kiddoes so fascinating.
Laura Jane is my only daughter and made me a mom when I was just 22 years old. I sometimes wonder what in the world I was doing at such a tender age, taking a tiny little newborn home, but she was gracious to me, and we got along just fine. Thankfully, she was a pretty easy going baby and such a fun little girl. Our personalities couldn’t be more different and when she was younger, this would frustrate me to no end. Laura is extremely unemotional and almost nothing flusters her, including her mother’s emotional ups and downs. When she was little, her stubbornness drove me insane as she would pick the craziest hills to die on. Today however, she has channeled this character trait into something positive. She is assertive and will not back down on something she believes is right, even in the face of tremendous peer pressure. For a mom of a teenager, this is something that is reassuring and makes me incredibly proud. Laura also has a great sense of humor and is becoming my ally and closest friend. I love having a daughter! It might be prejudiced to say, but I happen to think she’s the most beautiful 15-year old I know; inside and out!
Then there’s Nate! He was my happy baby. He giggled and laughed his way through babyhood. And really, he hasn’t stopped. He has a funny, outgoing, charming personality. Oh yeah, and if you know him, you’ll know he never stops talking. About anything and everything. Hmmm, I wonder where he got that from? Nate is our miracle baby. I lost a baby in between Laura and Nate. When I was only 5 weeks pregnant with Nate, we nearly lost him too. For most of the my pregnancy with Nate there was an enormous blood clot dwarfing Nate in my uterus that threatened his life. We went in for weekly ultrasounds to check up on him. By the time that threat had passed, I went into pre-term labor with him at 30-weeks. The doctors were just minutes from an emergency C-section when things turned around. Nate, thankfully, was delivered full-term, just a week early. Everything was normal and he was a healthy 8 lb baby boy! God must have big plans for our first son! Nate loves Legos and loves to build. In fact, he is incredibly gifted at building. He hopes to be an architect someday and I can’t wait to see what amazing buildings and structures come out of that imaginative mind of his!
Then there’s Daniel. Oh my. Daniel. We thought long and hard about a third baby. My body had been through a lot with my fibromyalgia and the hyper emesis I suffer with in pregnancy. We were advised to not have anymore children after Nate, but we prayed about it and felt strongly that we should have one more. I am so glad we did. I can’t imagine this family without Daniel. Daniel, although to the outside world, seems to be quiet and shy, is the resident family clown. Once you get to know him you find out that he is hilarious! Daniel keeps this family in stitches! Daniel also has a will of iron! This was unbelievably difficult to me during his 2nd and 3rd years. It took me quite a bit of patience and digging to figure out this little boy who could scream for 45 minutes because I cut his toast in squares instead of triangles and who instantly began to bang his head on the floor and scream the minute we walked into church. But, we got through it. I found Daniel some coping mechanisms and we also discovered that he couldn’t hear! Surgery for tubes twice have certainly helped with that. Daniel has tenaciously overcome many challenges and is currently chipping away at learning to read. I love to snuggle with Daniel. Daniel is the one who will cuddle up on my lap, hugs me every morning and tells me I’m beautiful every day. What mom could resist that!? Daniel says he’s going to be a policeman someday.
“I get kissed by the sun
Each morning
Put my feet on a hardwood floor
I get to hear my children laughing
Down the hall through the
Bedroom door
Sometimes I sit on my
Front porch swing
Just soaking up the day
I think to myself, I think to myself
This world is a beautiful place
I have been blessed
And I feel like I’ve found my way
I thank God for all I’ve been given
At the end of every day
I have been blessed
With so much more than I deserve
To be here with the ones
That love me
To love them so much it hurts
I have been blessed”
-I Have Been Blessed
Martina McBride
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