Generations of Mothers

My mother is an amazing woman. I am so blessed to have been raised by her, and to still be best friends with her. She shaped my character, molded my heart and taught me how to be a woman and a mother. I don’t take it for granted how lucky I am that she is still so involved in my life and in my children’s lives. I love every second of it! She is truly a godly woman, full of the Proverbs 31 attributes and more.

Growing up with my mom, I felt an amazing sense of security. She loved us deeply with words and in action. One of the things I love most about my mom is that she always has striven to be available to us – and still does. She was so reliable growing up – we always knew we could count on her to be there for us when we needed her (even when we didn’t know we needed her!). She was always home and available when we got home from school and I have such great memories of sitting around talking to her in the afternoon. She made time to take us shopping even when it was miserable to shop with a teenage girl – oh the drama! She made time to drive us back and forth to friends’ houses. She made time to make us a great family dinner everyday. She made time to make every special thing that happened during the year extra special. She still uses the birthday banners for every family birthday. She is an amazing gift giver. She always finds the perfect gifts for every occasion and is so thoughtful. She just has an amazing gift for making others feel loved.

Now that I am a mom, I appreciate her more. Being available to my kids is not easy. There are so many distractions in life. I always think about my mom’s example and want my kids to be able to feel that way about me one day – that I was available to them, that they could rely on me. My mom also made time to serve others, to make our friends feel loved, to be a great friend to others. She is an amazing keeper of her home. She has always kept her home immaculate, which made it so pleasant for us to be at home. She is also such a great shopper and saver. I am forever grateful for my mom’s example as a wife, mother and woman of God. I love you, mom!

Moms leave powerful legacies. I also have two wonderful grandmothers who have influenced me indirectly through my parents. Grandma Ruby is my mom’s mom. We affectionately called her Memaw. Grandma Ruby always lived in the same house where she raised my mom. She was such a hard worker. She grew crops and took care of the land long after her husband passed on. I love hearing stories about things she used to cook, make and how frugal she was. She had hands that showed how hard she worked. I know she passed on that character of hard work, thriftiness and prudence to my mom. My favorite memories of Memaw are of waking up at her house as a child and smelling the delicious hot breakfast she was making for us. Of course, she was always up first and already working! I also remember helping her cook. I now love to cook and treasure those memories of being in her kitchen with her and being sent to her garden to try to find vegetables. I remember being sent to find green onions and I tried so hard, but couldn’t figure out which ones they were! I remember one summer she helped us make a garden in our yard. I wish she was still here and could help me learn to garden in my yard.

Grandma Susie is my dad’s mom. I think about Grandma Susie often these days since I ended up with three little boys. Grandma Susie had 6 little boys!! My dad is the youngest. He tells me hilarious stories about all the trouble he and his brothers caused and my heart goes out to my grandmother. He tells me about how she had to throw rocks at the boys upon occasion to get them in line. Oh, how I can relate! Those six boys loved their mom so so much! They still fight over who grandma loved most and talk about her like she was an angel. That is so precious to me and I hope my boys love me that much when they are grown. My dad also tells stories about how poor they were and yet how Grandma Susie shared everything they had with neighbor kids who had less. She never turned a needy child away and always took care of others in need – even though she was raising 6 boys on her own. I know she passed on this character of loving and caring for anyone in need and especially for children to my dad. He is carrying on her legacy and has passed on that heart for serving others to me. I hope I can pass it on to my children as well by my example.

Happy Mother’s Day to my Mother and my Grandmothers.