A WONDERFUL Mother's Day!

My girls are enough reason for me to celebrate being a mother everyday but yesterday was really special. Aaron is so wonderful to help me and make me feel special all the time but all of that and barely lifting a finger for a day is great! I only changed a couple of diapers all day because I insisted because he was busy doing other things. He gave the 3 little girls their baths, ironed all our clothes, and dressed them all by himself. I only had to get myself ready for church (except for doing hair because he actually is very particular about their appearance and he insists I do a much better job with hair). We had a great day at church and ran by Chipotle to pick up lunch and brought it back home with us. I took a wonderful Sunday afternoon nap and then Aaron and the girls cooked dinner. It was delicious. They even got out the fine china!

Aaron's wonderful shrimp alfredo-competely from scratch! It is not pictured but he also got my favorite bread-Potato Herb from Albertson's bakery. It tastes just like the bread at Macaroni Grill and his alfredo is the best I have ever eaten! And for dessert-homeade apple dumplings with ice cream! He really got lots of points for this. I had found the recipe a while back and was planning to try it when I was cooking for someone else because he does not eat apples but he made it himself and even ate some of it (and liked it)!

I am so thankful for not only 4 wonderful daughters but a husband who does all of this for me. Yesterday I couldn't help but think of mothers who don't have husbands to let them know how much they appreciate them as mothers of their children. Thank you! You are the best!

After dinner Elleigh and I ran to tell our friends the May's goodbye one last time while A got the girls in bed. The May's were our old neighbors and they graduated on Friday and are moving today. We are always saying goodbye to someone (especially around this time of year.) The May's and The Gonzales' (our neighbors on the other side who moved almost 2 years ago to FL) were the first people we met the day we moved here. That day is forever in my mind and they are a part of that. I remember thinking they are really sweet but I still don't want to be here. Elizabeth would come over and say you got to get these boxes unpacked and I didn't say it but I thought I don't want to unpack these boxes because I don't want to be here! Last night as I drove away from their house and our old little house was sitting there all of that came flooding back to me and I smiled. Does anything look any different than it did 3 1/2 years ago, not really but the memories are wonderful! The houses are still tiny but the memories are huge! The May's had 4 kids and she stayed home and homeschooled and the Gonzales' had 4 with #5 on the way and she stayed home and homeschooled and I was thinking that is great but not me. We all know the rest of that story!!! Just last week I ran across a card that a former pastor's wife had given to us when we moved here and it read "make lots of friends, you will treasure those friendships for the rest of your life". I had no idea how true that statement was until recently. We really are a Seminary family and we all live this experience together. We are always so excited to watch someone move on to their next phase of ministry yet it is sad to say goodbye so often. When we knew God had called us to full time ministry and were preparing for Seminary so many people said to us well can't you go somewhere closer to home or what about an extension campus, etc. In the back of my mind I thought those things as well but we knew that God had called us here and what we had to do. I am so thankful for this entire experience. We needed the entire experience to take us to a different place in life, a new level with God. We needed the support of others who were struggling through this just like us. I needed to be humbled. I needed to be forced to open up to people I had not known forever. I needed to respect my husband more. I needed to be changed. I still need to be changed. I will always need to be changed but God has been so good to allow me to be changed in so many ways through this experience. I just did a post within a post!

So, my day ended after we got back home and A and I watched P.S. I love you. As it was ending, A said OK, your day is almost over, is there anything else I can do for you. Yes, I am spoiled!!!