Today we celebrated mothers. Being a mother. Being raised by mothers. And all the non-biological mothers out there who do a fantastic job mothering my children at school, in our neighborhood and the ont field and courts – my kids have so many “mother” figures in their lives and we celebrated all of them today.

We started the morning with the most delicious breakfast and Hunter and Steve were the master crepe makers. We don’t make them very often but they are my favorite.

We ended the evening hosting Steve’s parents for dinner – the kids prepared a delicious meal for us all and even cleaned up for us.

It was a beautiful day and I was reminded of how grateful I am for this stage of motherhood.

Teenagers (and pre-teens) get a bad rap – but they are fun. They talk. They share. They bring so much laughter into the home and they bring their friends with them. Every stage of motherhood has come with its own set of challenges and plays on a different set of insecurities, but I love this stage. It’s the most comfortable and natural I’ve felt in motherhood since I started this journey 16 years ago. I love where we’re at and recognize the tides change quickly so we’ll enjoy it for what it’s worth!

At church, the kids filled out questionnaires that were given to me today.

Hallie said:

The most loved quality about my mom that I admire is that she loves the lake and loves my friends.

The one thing my mom says a lot is: “If you’re bored, maybe you should go clean your room” & “You’re my favorite daughter”.

Something my mom and I love to do together is talk at 1 o’clock in the morning. hehe (you should have seen the younger boys faces when they heard that one – there isn’t a world where they could imagine Hallie is allowed to stay up that late!)

A special memory about your mother: When I was crying after I found out my 4th sibling was going to be another boy and she helped me realize all of the good things of being the only girl.

Hunter said:

My most loved quality about my mom that I admire is her support for me in my sports.

The one thing my mom says a lot is “You’re not making the point you think you are.”

Something my mom and I like to do together is play soccer and build.

Bennett said:

My most loved quality about my mom that I admire is she’s hard working.

The one thing my mom says a lot is “go do your laundry”.

Something my mom and like to do together is listen to music.

My mom is really great at being a mom.

Cannon said:

My most loved quality about my mom that I admire is she makes a lot of stuff.

The one thing my mom says a lot is “clean your room”.

Something my mom and I like to do together is mother/son time.

A special memory of your mother: When she went to Disneyland with me.

Briggs said:

My favorite thing to do with you is snuggle.

I like it when you cook bean burritos.

I know you love me when you hug me.

My world revolves around these 5 kids (and a husband not pictured!) I am grateful for the time and grace I’ve had to grow into my role as a mother and I know it will continue to change me and I look forward to that. Happy Mother’s day!