Throughout my life I have been blessed with many Mothers. Besides my own biological mother, I have been impacted by so many others as well. My step-mother, my grandmothers, my aunts, cousins, family friends, neighbors, and especially my wife have all had a big impact on my life. While I would like to write something about each and every mother that has impacted my life, that will simply not be possible - at least not for today. So I will simply pay tribute to the immediate mothers in my life, but know that I love and thank you all for everything you have ever done for me.
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My mother gave me my chance at this life. She has loved me and all of my siblings since they day we arrived, and has never once failed to show it. I know she holds some regret over decisions made during her life, but despite her self perceived imperfections, she has always had perfect love for her kids. No question in my mind.
Now her heart aches over the recent loss of Ben, her son, our brother. And while nothing will ever erase that pain, her ability to love, and her desire to be there for those that remain will help dull it some.
I want her to know how much I love and appreciate all she has ever done for me and our family. Her single greatest gift to me was the chance to one day be a father. I love you Mom. |
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My step-mother, Diane, showed me the capacity a mother has to love. Not only did she take on the job of raising her own six children, she stepped up and tackled another six when she married my dad.
I am a father of only four children, and this has given me a mere glimpse of the task she had before her. I am overwhelmed often. She had to have been overwhelmed constantly!
Yet she hung in there, despite all the bumps in the road. Each and every child in her home was her child. She gave of her time. She gave of her love. And now she is a proud grandmother to a growing army of grandchildren. I believe she will tell you the ride was worth it. Thanks for everything Diane. I love you. |
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My mother-in-law was a bonus part of the package that came with marrying my wife. I just didn't realize it would be literally. She has lived with us now for the past few years, and while I won't claim it has always been a blissfully happy arrangement, overall it has been nice to have her.
Besides being a wonderful grandmother to our kids, she has also been a big help around the house as well. Both Jody and I hate cooking (well, I just dislike it), but grandma seems to love it! Well, maybe not, but she does it anyway and it has been a big help. She has also helped us out at times watching kids, which was recently a HUGE deal when Ciera was born and we spent so much time in the NICU with her.
I want to thank her as well for all she has done for me and my family over the years. I especially want to thank her for giving me my wife. This enabled me to be a father and a husband. Thank you Dale. I love you. |
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Words cannot express how special my wife Jody is to our family. We couldn't ask for a better Mother. She has always been there for us, in every way. I cannot even begin to make this claim myself. I say "us" because I pretty much need to count myself as one of the kids most of the time. She takes care of all of us, and we definitely do not express enough gratitude for all the hard work and service she so freely gives.
From mountains of laundry each week, to chasing each kid to each different life activity, she is constantly going 100 miles an hour. At times she feels overwhelmed. Especially these past few months with the addition of Ciera. She wants so much to accomplish every task on her list each day, and quite often goes to bed having only scratched the surface, if at all. To say she gets burned out is an understatement. Like all of us, she isn't perfect. And she often feels like she doesn't measure up, but to me and her kids she is simply amazing.
Jody I think I can speak well on behalf of all your kids. Thank you for everything you do for us - every single day. We love you. I love you. |
Happy Mother's Day !