The blessings of great women

It's Mother's Day weekend... so as my Flashback Friday/ Saturday I thought I would honor my "mothers"

Ms. Clinton popularized the phrase, "It takes a village to raise a child" and while I'm not a fan of hers I really have come to believe it.

My mom is a great mom, she was always supportive of us and what we wanted to do in life, she showed us how to love and never ever made us feel bad about ourselves. And I'm not taking anything away from how she raised us and loved us but as we all know we learn things from different people and there were a lot of lessons I learned from those who have been a big part of my life. So I'm going to talk about them as well as my mom. My mom was one of those mothers when I was little that would sit down on the ground with you and play in the dirt if you asked her too, she was never too busy for a hug or if you needed to talk about life. Now as a grandma she does the same thing, she is SO involved in not just Kira's life but my niece and nephews too. When I talk to her she is always telling me about what Austin or Mikey said on the phone to her the day before or some picture of Tater-tot (that's not her real name but I love it) that my sister sent (these are my sister's kids) and she does the same with Kira. My mom will just call to talk to Kira and Kira LOVES it, whenever she's bored she says, "let's talk to Gram-Jan, I want to call her" Thanks Mom. I love you!

I know from how she talks that that was not the way she was raised. My grandmother (her mother) was a more, how do I put this, not really at arm's length but just sort of separated I guess you can say. She loved her kids, but she was an only child and i don't think had a lot of interaction with young kids. She was a great mom too, just in a different way. She was very supportive of her kids too and was a great grandma to us. (Even though sometimes I would be afraid of her when she would glare at us with her head tilted down over her glasses) As I got older and spent more time with her I realized what a sweet and genuine lady she was. She fought cancer for 15+ years and took care of my ailing grandfather during one of her cancer free periods. She has taught me perseverance and patience. When my grandpa passed away she didn't hide in a hole she got out and saw the world, went on cruises and had fun. One of my favorite times in my life was the 3 weeks we spend in England together with my mom, sister and friends. We just had a blast!!!

The other lady in this picture (other than my sister and me) is my great-grandma. I know I have talked about this before but I was lucky enough to not only have all my grandparent's growing up but also my great-grandparents. And boy did they love us! My great-grandma or as we called her "Dede" was a pretty tough woman. She was little but TOUGH!! I can't imagine what it must have been like to lose your husband to pneumonia having to raise an 8 year old daughter in 1938. But she did it and did it well. Dede loved her grandkids and her great-grandkids. She had a great sense of humor. I miss her.

(from left to right: My Mom, Me on her lap, Dede, My Grandma, my sister on her lap)

picture taken sometime in late 1980/early 81

This is my dad's side of the family.... with my mom second from the left. These ladies are my aunt Cheryl on left, my mom, my grandma and my Aunt Michelle. My mom had no sisters of her own growing up but got them through marriage... and friendship.

These ladies have been just as instrumental in my life as the ladies above. Cheryl has taught me kindness and perseverance. When she first joined our family I was little taken aback. We were living in South Afrika when my Uncle started dating her and we came home on home-leave and there she was, just appeared out of what seemed to be no where, or at least that's what it seemed like to my 9 year old brain. But over the years she has become a real part of my family, she helped throw my baby-shower for Kira and it was SO fun and SO great, it was then I really knew that she thought of me as a niece and loved me that same way. I am thankful for her love and support and grateful to call her my aunt.

I already talked about my mom, so I'll skip her.... LOVE YOU MOM!!

Those who read my blog, not sure how many there are really, but those who do will remember this post that I wrote last year. My grandma was pretty fantastic. She took me in at 18, helped me with school, money, and whatever else comes with an 18 year old. She loved us grandkids and her family and only wanted what was best for us. Read that link, it will tell you how I feel about her. This is the first mother's day of my life without my grandma. I miss her. I wish I could be there with my family as they visit her grave tomorrow. My life wouldn't be what it is today without her. I miss you Gram.

Then there is Auntie M.... she is my dad's twin and is the only aunt that is actually blood related to me. Crazy as she was she took me in at 18 too (I went to Seattle first before I lived with my grandma in California) She found me a job, dealt with my insurance, finding a car, dealing with it being stolen. Going to court and fighting for me, finding me a new car and then just the everyday day stuff of me being 18, feeling lost and throwing tantrums..... Once I decided the sun was better for me than the rain I missed her. She loves me, she teaches me every day. She loves Kira, she is so giving. I'm so thankful for her as well. Like I said above, there are lessons that your parents teach you and there are lessons that someone else has to teach you. She has taught me a lot of those lessons. I love you "M"!

The last lady I want to write about, I don't think I have a picture of, except from my huge wedding party one.... My "Aunt" Ginny. I'm using the ""'s because she's not actually my aunt. We aren't related at all. She is my mom's best friend and currently lives in England. We meet her in South Afrika, one of the only women that would speak to my mother at church when we lived there. They became instant friends and she became a big part of my life. She has taught be the lessons of sacrifice, faith, determination and love. There is a special place in my heart for this lady who I hardly ever see. (Last time was when I got married almost 7 years ago) But I often think about her and the lessons she has taught me over the years. I often wonder what she would say about certain circumstances in my life, like my health and my ward...(the ones about my ward make me giggle... cause she's pretty feisty!)

My Heavenly Father has blessed me with women both strong in the gospel and strong in their individual faiths. MOST of my family is either no active in our church or just not LDS... but these women have ALL taught me something of gospel principles whether they meant to or not. They have shown me the rewards of patience, perseverance, unconditional love, faith, service, charity and I could go on and on. This doesn't even include my mother-in-law who has got to be one of the BEST women I know.... She is fantastic and I am thankful for her everyday of my life. I miss talking to her everyday or a couple of times a week like I used to when Jacob and I were dating and just married (she's not a great phone talker, she doesn't hear well if she can't also read your lips) She is just as responsible for these life lessons.

I could really go on and on and on about fantastic women in my life. I did my friend post a couple of weeks ago... all those women could be included in this post too. So I think I will end here, because this could potentially be the longest post every, with a Thank you to my Heavenly Father for placing me in the family he did, for the lessons I have learned from each one of these women, for the love I have felt my whole life from all of these women. I truly am blessed.