a mother's day morning

Naomi woke up again this morning at 5:30 a.m. That's two days in a row that Gnomers has slept in past 4:45 a.m. She must have known it was Mother's Day. Like most mornings, Greg went and got her, gave her a bottle, and took her and the others downstairs to get cracking on my breakfast. Nicholas and Sophia think it's so much fun to bring me breakfast in bed. Sometime around 6:30 a.m., I got up and went to the bathroom, and I could hear Nicholas creeping upstairs and then saying, "Dad! It's not Sophia, it's Mom! She's awake!! She can't come downstairs or it'll ruin the surprise!" Apparently, Sophia was still sleeping and I wasn't supposed to know that they were making me breakfast. So like the good mother that I am, I roll back into bed and burrow back under the covers to the warm part of the bed.

About an hour later, I hear the giggling as they bring up breakfast. Chocolate chip pancakes, scrambled eggs, apples and oranges, and a icy cold Diet Coke. My kids know their mama well. Nicholas carrying the breakfast tray and Sophia carrying a pile of presents they had been working on at their schools and after school at home. Nicholas made a bowl with recycled paper, and Sophia made a purse with a graham cracker box. Super cute--my favorite presents so far. And lots of pictures and cards. I told them I'd take them to work. They love it when I take their things for my office. I love having their things in my office because on my bad days, they remind me of what is important and puts things in perspective.

Naomi crawls over to me and proceeds to reach for my chocolate chip pancakes. I try to break off the non-chocolate parts for her. She eats a whole pancake (they weren't very big) and then reaches and grabs a handful of scrambled eggs. She snuggles back and finishes her bottle. After 30 seconds, she crawls over and grabs Nicholas's recycled bowl (now filled with mini chocolate chip muffins from Sophia's graham cracker box purse) and tries to eat the bowl.

Since she woke up so early, Naomi goes down for a nap at 8:00 a.m. Nicholas and Sophia then join me in bed with their breakfast and eat. Then they go off to take showers and I am left alone in bed to eat my breakfast and read a book--a true luxury--while Greg goes downstairs to clean up the kitchen.

If my day ended there, it would have been a perfect day. Not that the rest of the day wasn't just as good. We went to church and Greg got to stay with us for Sacrament Meeting--Justin made arrangements for Elders Quorum so he and Greg could be with family today. Super. We miss him at church. Naomi took an afternoon nap for almost an hour and half and Greg came home early. Super super. Then we went to dinner with Greg's parents and his sister's family. A little late for Gnomes, but it was fun and we had a great time together. One of the most fun dinners we had together. When we got home, Greg put the kids to bed as he does almost every night while I talked to my parents. Super super super.

It's not easy to be a mother, and I have my moments when I worry that I'm not good enough. Or patient enough. Or fun enough. Or ___ enough. But at the end of the day, I am humbled to have been blessed with my sweet husband and three fabulous and healthy children who remind me how lucky I am to be a part of their lives.