Mothers' Day thoughts

I'm sitting here on my bed in my quiet house, all alone. I know so many mothers that would give a lot to get a few minutes of peace and quiet, some alone time without their children.

I tend to crave ME time where I can just be, without anyone else asking anything of me. And I have an incredible husband who is an awesome father and facilitates that quite often-even if it's just in the form of getting out the marbles and shutting himself and the girls in their bedroom for a few hours. He doesn't really think twice about taking them out shopping with him (although I think 2 trips out yesterday wore him out-he said they were in rare form!) and today he took them to church alone-even though he's really not feeling super great himself and would rather have stayed home.

But today, I am not craving that me time. I think maybe because I've been getting a lot of it lately here on the sofa or on my bed. There are many Sundays where it's so easy to stay home-citing Scharae's wheeze or Keira's statements of a headache. And I know today was a day that John really wanted to stay home. But the girls were going to church. He was in the middle of a long coughing fit just before loading up into the car and Keira looked at me and asked me which rights and lefts she and Scharae needed to take because maybe they would just have to go alone and leave dad at home with mom...after all, they did get new scooters for their birthdays yesterday!

John did end up taking them, and I'm sure he'll come home from church none the worse for wear. But I wish I could be there with them. I wish I could be sitting next to them, helping him do his best to keep them quiet at the right times. I wish I could see how happy I know they'll be when they get their Birthday Pencils in their primary class. I think that it sometimes can take the inability to do or have some of the things that I take for granted to make me realize just how special and important they are. Don't get me wrong-I love my girls each and every day. But thinking about not being able to go to school with Keira on Wednesday-her "special day"-for her birthday, and having her old enough to realize that I'm not there, not going to church with them but sending them along on their own with their dad. That sort of thing. Maybe it's just because it's Mothers' Day, I don't know.

I do know that while I was really looking forward to hanging flower baskets for my porch (which the girls were supposed to pick out....with a little prodding from me) it was very sweet to know the reason I didn't get them was because they insisted on getting me little potted azaleas and mums instead. I love that they have opinions of their own and know what it is they want! I'm really not a fan of indoor plants, but these ones I will love. As much as I loved the blizzard they told their dad I needed on their way home from DQ after shopping last night. I know that my girls and my husband both truly love and appreciate me, and I guess that's what today is all about-hanging baskets or not!