Motherhood

I just had to take a second to write down a couple of my thoughts. Last night I was talking with some friends about being a mom and the challenges of having toddlers and babies. I have to admit there have been plenty of times I have been frustrated, upset, worn out, fatigued, etc. but I try to remember that this is just a small part of my life. I mean if I live to like 80 or 90 what is a few years with little kids? Not much. When I am old I want to have lots of family, lots of grandkids around me. I mean how much fun is it to get together with family and go on vacations or just hang out? Obviously the only way to have that is to have kids. The most important thing we have is our family and yes having little kids is difficult but nothing worthwhile has ever been easy. I know as women we want to have time to do our own things, to pursue our own goals, but as it says in the scriptures everything has a season. For me I have always wanted to have a career in history, I want to get a PhD, teach college, research, and write. There will be a time for that. If I have one more child, it will be six, seven years until I can really pursue that career full time, but as I mentioned earlier what a small amount of time compared to a whole lifetime. Also, how much more joy and happiness can my family bring me than any aspect of a career. Marina was just doing wheels on the bus go round and round and that made me smile more than any A on any paper. I'm not saying women shouldn't take time for themselves, in fact I think they should because it makes us better wives and mothers to take care of ourselves first. I'm just suggesting we take a step back and realize how short this time is that we have with our little children and try and treasure that time.

We went to a dental convention in Denver last week and once again it was great to see everyone there. It is so awesome that we can be apart for months and months and then get together and it's like we never left. We went to the Denver aquarium with the Ronco family and the kids were immediately talking, giggling, and just being best friends. Of course, I always enjoy a trip to the big city. I did some shopping, dining out, and enjoyed the chaos of the city. Our hotel we stayed at was awesome, we stayed in suite so we were able to put the kids to bed in one room and then hang out in another. It is nice to be able to go somewhere and stay where we want and not just where it is cheapest. You past students know what I'm talking about. So we had a great time, I just wish we could have stayed longer.

Here are the little best friends.

At the aquarium there was a bird, I think it was a macaw, it was screeching very loudly and the girls did not like it. Camryn looked at the bird and yelled, "BE QUIET!!" I had to laugh.

Here's all the kids. Jared and Johnny are getting all grown up. I don't know how that has happened since I have not aged at all.

I have to thank my sister, Staci, for coming with us. I wasn't even going to go because honestly two days by myself with three children in a hotel room is not exactly my idea of a dream vacation. But Josh convinced my sister to come with us and so I went and I could not have done it without her. Staci you are awesome!!

Who loves Oreos? ME!!