MOTHERS and MOMS

I know this is long - but well worth the read!

This is for the mothers who have sat up
all night with sick toddlers in their arms,
wiping up barf laced with Oscar Mayer
wieners and cherry Kool-Aid saying,
"It's okay honey, Mommy's here."
Who have sat in rocking chairs for hours on end
soothing crying babies who can't be comforted.
This is for all the mothers who show up at
work with spit-up in their hair and milk stains
on their blouses and diapers in their purse.
For all the mothers who run carpools and
make cookies and sew Halloween costumes.
And all the mothers who DON'T.
This is for the mothers who gave birth to
babies they'll never see. And the mothers
who took those babies and gave them homes.
This is for the mothers whose priceless art
collections are hanging on their refrigerator doors.
And for all the mothers who froze their buns on metal bleachers at football or soccer games instead of watching from the warmth of their cars. And that when their kids asked, "Did you see me, Mom?"
they could say, "Of course, I wouldn't
have missed it for the world,"
and mean it.
This is for all the mothers who yell at their kids in the grocery store and swat them in despair when they stomp their feet and scream for ice cream before dinner. And for all the mothers who count to ten instead, but realize how child abuse happens.
This is for all the mothers who sat down with
their children and explained all about making
babies. And for all the (grand)mothers who
wanted to, but just couldn't find the words.
This is for all the mothers who go
hungry, so their children can eat.
For all the mothers who read "Goodnight, Moon"
twice a night for a year. And then read it again,
"Just one more time."
This is for all the mothers who taught
their children to tie their shoelaces before
they started school. And for all the mothers
who opted for Velcro instead.
This is for all the mothers who teach their sons
to cook and their daughters to sink a jump shot.
This is for every mother whose head turns automatically when a little voice calls "Mom?"
in a crowd, even though they know their
own offspring are at home -- or even away
at college -- or have their own families.
This is for all the mothers who sent their kids
to school with stomach aches, assuring them
they'd be just FINE once they got there, only
to get calls from the school nurse an hour later
asking them to please pick them up. Right away.
This is for mothers whose children have gone
astray, who can't find the words to reach them.
For all the mothers who bite their lips until they
bleed when their 14 year olds dye their hair green.
For all the mothers of the victims of
recent school shootings, and the mothers
of those who did the shooting.
For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who sat in front of their TVs in horror, hugging their child who just came home from school, safely.
This is for all the mothers who taught their
children to be peaceful, and now pray
they come home safely from a war.
What makes a good mother anyway?
Is it patience? Compassion? Broad hips? The ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner, and
sew a button on a shirt, all at the same time?
Or is it in her heart? Is it the ache she feels when she
watches her son or daughter disappear
down the street, walking to school alone
for the very first time?
The jolt that takes her from sleep to
dread, from bed to crib at 2 A.M. to put
her hand on the back of a sleeping baby?
The panic, years later, that comes again
at 2 A.M. when she just wants to hear
their key in the door and know they
are safe again in her home?
Or the need to flee from wherever she is
and hug her child when she hears news
of a fire, a car accident, a child dying?
The emotions of motherhood are
universal and so our thoughts are for
young mothers stumbling through diaper
changes and sleep deprivation...
And for mature mothers learning to let go.

For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers.
Single mothers and married mothers.
Mothers with money, mothers without.
This is for you all. For all of us...
Hang in there. In the end we can
only do the best we can. Tell them
every day that we love them. And pray
and never stop being a mother...

5-7-9

Today’s date is 05/07/09. There used to be a clothing store in the mall with the same name. I liked going there to brag that I was one of those sizes, because it meant you were small. It didn’t matter if I bought a necklace or the largest size they had as long as I was ‘small’.

I was a very, very fat baby with jowls big enough to knock people over. Consequently my brother thought I was still fat when I turned twenty. He'd call me the 'fat' sister. Sandra, the oldest was the 'thin' sister. When his future wife met me, she was astounded to see that I wasn’t fat at all. Years later she asked if it bothered me to be described that way. I told her, no! I knew I wasn’t heavy so why worry about it.


Still I did brag about finding a dress that was a size 2 that fit me. Who wouldn’t? It’s natural for a woman to want to be size 5, 7 or 9, although I pushed on years ago from those numbers. ‘What a man thinketh’ he is or the famous, ‘It’s not what’s on the outside that counts, but what’s on the inside’. I agree some of the plainest, heaviest and weirdest looking people are the ones people are drawn to, because they don’t worry about the superficial and are just genuinely terrific.

Are you a 5-7-9 or popular by personality, patience or productivity?

Bachelor cum laude

I was suprised too when noticing the C next to Jory's name, which meant he had a grade point average of 3.6. How is this possible for a student that looses his homework, appears to be asleep in class and even forgets he signed up to take the ?test. The only explanation for it is that the Lord had a hand in it, all the way.

What a wonderful day to see our grown son accept his Bachelor's degree today. He's all grown up and ready to leave a bachelor's life behind him in eight short weeks. It's such a joy to have four college graduates and know I helped get them there with encouragement, money and a little prodding. They did most of it themselves, though.

Congratulations, Jory. A job well done. Don't stop here, keep going.
I'll post pictures when I can get the computer to work.

24/7 Man

Here's your brother with a new smile and now officially 24 years old.


Seven major things happening in his life now:
1. Will graduate from UVU on May 1st w/Bachelor's degree.
2. Engaged to be married June 26th.
3. Hired officially as 4th grade teacher @Saratoga Springs Elem.
4. Looking for a new home.
5. Staying up too late.
6. Got car repaired this week costing $700+
7. Still loses things & needs a wife.

1st, 2nd vs. 3rd & more

This was originally an email sent to me long ago that I have modified to suit me.

Maternity Clothes
1st pregnancy – You begin wearing as soon as you find out you are pregnant.
2nd pregnancy – You try to hold off wearing for as long as possible.
3rd pregnancy or more – Your maternity clothes are your regular clothes.

What to Expect when You’re Expecting Book
1st – You read it and are current with which month you are in.
2nd – You read it here & there, especially when you have a question.
3rd or more – Do I even still own that book?

Binki’s – when dropped on the ground
1st – wrap it up and will not use it again until boiled and disinfected at home
2nd – rinse it off with juice or water and stick it back in
3rd or more – wipe off the dirt or big chunks and stick it back in

Diapers
1st – always the right size or larger and change them like clockwork
2nd – usually the right size but changed a little less often
3rd or more – a 3 year old still fit into a size 3 right? & only change when full

Clothes
1st – boys wear blue & girls wear pink
2nd – boys wear blue, green, or purple & girls wear pink, yellow, green, purple, etc.
3rd or more – boys can wear pink!

Beds, dressers, car seat, etc.
1st – All set up months in advance
2nd – mostly set up by time go to the hospital
3rd or more – have to find the car seat to bring baby home from the hospital & share the rest with older siblings




What is this? Think about Halloween day - fun huh? We are still disagreeing about a name.

Baseball in a Big Way

Aaron sent these photos to Dad. Excitement got the best of me, I had to post them with Aaron's comments.

"Brayle had her first game of the season. Her team is really good. I was impressed. Brayle had two hits and was hit by a pitch for her third time. She did really good at fielding. It's hard to show a girl how to field and bat, because girls work differently than boys. She's picking it up really well. I'm also learning patience on teaching her, so that's good.

We have five games in four days between the two kids. It makes for a busy week but lots of fun. We will keep you up on the games."

Of course, the kids have natural abilities that are shining through, handed down from their dad. It won't take the coaches & audience long to choose them as a favorite. The whole town will be talking about the Crosman wonders by July 4th.

It's About Grandma Genevieve Schmidt

“Tax Day” has come & gone. Have you filed yours yet? It's also Grandma Schmidt’s birthday this week.

These two eventful days were one & the same for 92 years. It’s hard to believe she’s been gone for five. Although she got on my nerves many a time, (as I probably do to my sons-in-law), she was an amazing person. Here are the things I see you have inherited from her.

Allan: Gets right to the job until it’s done & her terrible cough.
Jenn: Not afraid to share the gospel & meet people.
Mauri: Hard working and totally dependable.
Alicia: Drill sergeant
Breann: Clean machine
Jory: School teacher
If you disagree, then tell us what great qualities you think you've developed.