Garret's Birthday and Baptism

As I mentioned in a previous post, Garret had to celebrate his birthday in transit. He was a little bummed that he didn't get to have a party with his friends, but we tried to still make it special for him. He got to choose dinner that night, so we ended up at Chuck E. Cheese (Yay for being back in the States!) for pizza and games. After we got to San Antonio, we took him to Wal-Mart and let him pick out a couple of presents for himself.

A new Skylander figure for the Wii.

 

Pokemon cards

Because of the move, we weren't able to have Garret's baptism until the middle of November.  It was a great day and we were able to share it with some wonderful people. Ben's parents, and his brother Jake and his family came over from Houston for the weekend. Ben's cousin Sophie and her family also drove across town to be there. Garret also got to share the day with his friend Asher, who also got baptized.

With Daddy before the baptism. :)

Afterward, the family all came back to the house for food and visiting. It was great to catch up with everyone after two-and-a-half years.

Confessions of a Guilty Mom

I love my children. They are four of the best things in my life, and I would give up that life to protect them without a second thought. They make me laugh. They make me look at life in a whole new way. They make my life infinitely more interesting and meaningful. But...

They also drive me crazy. They're noisy, and messy, and can't seem to get through an entire day without fighting with each other (quite often over the silliest things). I have days when I want to pull my hair out. Occasionally I have moments where I have to scream...not words, not yelling at them about something (although that happens too)...primal, wordless screams. It just builds up and comes out, and then I feel better.

Alex asked me this morning if I get lonely when they're all at school. I told him honestly that I don't. I enjoy the time to myself. After dropping them off (I drove the younger three since Keri is still recovering from pneumonia) I thought about it and realized (again) I'm not THAT mom. I don't volunteer in classrooms. I used to tell myself that once I didn't have little ones at home I would, but I don't. I am SO ready to send them back to school after summer break, or winter break, or even a long weekend. I had a friend a few years ago that was always doing little crafts with her preschoolers. I tend to let my kids do their own thing while I do mine (read, knit, etc.).

This fact causes a certain amount of "Mommy Guilt". I see posts on Facebook from friends who are LOVING spending time with their kids and wish school holidays were longer, and I think "Why don't I enjoy my kids more? Is there something wrong with me?" Mommy Guilt. That voice in your head that tells you you're not good enough. When it hits me, I try to remember this:

I don't know where it originated from, but I love it. Someone came up with this which means that IT'S NOT JUST ME! 

I think that too often I focus on the negative and forget the positive. My kids are relatively happy, I'm frequently complimented on what good kids they are, and they think that I'm the best mom ever (at least most of the time). I may not be THAT mom, but I'm THEIR mom and that is a pretty sweet blessing. I may not volunteer in their classrooms, but I smother them with hugs and kisses (when I can catch them). I may not be constantly engaged with them, but we have some pretty epic tickle fights. And we DO play games together, even if its not on a regular basis. I don't think they've ever doubted that I love them. And really...isn't that the most important thing? So, I'm going to try harder to stop comparing myself to other moms. I leave you with a quote from Elder M. Russell Ballard from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints: