Mothers Day 2013: I Celebrate You...

On this Mother's Day, I have three very special women in my life that I celebrate...
From my precious mother who carried me as a baby, a child, and even many times now, and gave me life...

To my beloved mother-in-law who raised a son to become the man that would give life to me as a wife...

To my baby boy's amazing birthmother, who chose life for her son, and then chose to give life to me as a mom again.

Mother's Day 2014

...Today, I celebrate each of you. You have impacted my life in a way that no one else could. Your sacrifices have helped mold me into the woman, the wife, and the mother that I am today. But most importantly, the way you have lived your life, the way you have given your love, and the way you have sacrificed on so many different levels--each of your lives have helped draw mine closer to my Jesus in different ways. My words, my actions, and my tokens of affection will never measure up to what each of you has done, but that doesn't mean I will stop trying to figure out a way to be able to express to you the gratitude and love I have for each of you. I celebrate you today as an outpouring of my thanks to God for blessing my life so richly because of placing your life in mine.

...and I thank Him, that because of these two gifts I have been given, I have the privilege of participating in this day as I proudly wear the title of their mother. Lucy Shea and Gabriel Paul--I love you with all of my heart!

...My husband, as always, made Mother's Day a special day for me this year.  Lucy used money from her piggy bank and got me a Vera Bradley tumbler, Gabriel got me a chewbeads necklace (I'm not sure which one of us is more excited about that;-) and DH found Les Miserables on sale and we watched it that evening.  (If you haven't seen it, you MUST!  It is an amazing story of redemption with so many spiritual parallels.  And, of course, it's awesome because it's a musical:)  DH got me the sweetest card, too and grilled hamburgers for Mom and me.

My mother came in for the weekend, and she got to be at church with us on Sunday. (DH's parents are coming next weekend, so we will celebrate with her then:)  Several years ago, I wrote a song for her as her Mother's Day present, and I got to sing it at church this Sunday.  The point of the song is that through my mother's example, I am the woman I am today, because she showed Christ to me.  I pray my life, like the lives of all of the mothers in my life, will be an outpouring of love and sacrifice and will ultimately point others to my Jesus! 

Happy Mother's Day!

(As a side note...the introduction and the closing to this song contain the melody to "Hush little baby," because that's the song my mother always sang me to sleep with.  I couldn't get a recording of it to come out very clearly though, so I will just post the lyrics.)

Momma's Song 
by Paula-Beth Toller
I remember the days of pigtails and curls
Of Barbies and Cabbage Patch Kids
Being tucked in at night by the sweet lullabies
As my momma would sing me to sleep

Those times may be no more
But one thing is for sure

You kissed the scrapes, wiped the tears, through all the years
Never asked for a thing in return
You showed me love, gave me hope, that one day I would grow
Into the woman you knew I could be
And that's why you mean everything to me

Looking back on the years of my childhood days
I remember one thing more than the rest
How the faith that you showed and the love that you gave
Led me closer to my Jesus each day

It may have been long ago
But I remember it more than you know

You kissed the scrapes, wiped the tears, through all the years
Never asked for a thing in return
You showed me love, gave me hope, that one day I would grow
Into the woman you'd be proud to see
And that's why you mean everything to me

And now I can see
Everything I am now is because of all you've been to me

'Cause you kissed the scrapes, wiped the tears, through all the years
Never asked for a thing in return
You showed me love, gave me hope, that one day I would grow
Into the woman you knew I could be
And that's why you mean everything to me
Yes, that's why you mean everything to me
My momma you mean everything to me