How I became a mother....

Happy Mother's Day to all my friends....... This is such a special day for me.... I remember my first Mother's Day when Logan was a baby. His daddy gave me A Child's Garden of Verses, and I bawled like a baby ( I was still pregnant).... Then came sweet Hayden the week before Mother's Day. He gave me his first smile (not gas induced at all ;) that day.....My heart was so full of love for my 2 boys. They were the greatest gifts from God and still are. As my love for motherhood grew everyday with my boys I knew that I wasn't done being a mama. God had placed the strongest desire on my heart to mother more children. I remember the day I had my hysterectomy at age 27. I bawled, thinking that was the end..... HOW UNFAIR! I wanted more children! My boys were my life, AND I WASN'T DONE! Little did I know the surprises God had in store for me.....More wonderful surprises than I could ever imagine.... First came the love of my life who has the same heart for adoption that God planted in me..... Then, one by one, came our girls.... Each on a long journey of their own to my heart with twists and turns and ups and downs. They were born IN my heart, as my boys were born under it..... None of the 4 any more special than the others, but each one fabulous in their own right. Each one a gift from God. Today I reflect on my mama and how wonderful she is..... SHE was the example that led me to be the mother I am today....she stood by my side through HORRIBLE pregnancies, and supported me as we headed across an ocean to bring home a little girl (named for her) and then another... She is there everyday for me in every way. I also think of our wonderful foster mothers in Guatemala, Carolina and Margarita, who cared for my girls when I couldn't and love them as their own. I think of their birth mothers, Felicita and Aura, who made the most unselfish decision a mother can make..... They sent them to us. I know they are thinking of them today, and I pray they know they are happy, healthy, and where they are meant to be. I also know the ache in a mother's heart who is waiting for her child somewhere else. Know today that you're not alone. We all stand beside you holding your hand. Mother's Day is a wonderful day and a day to be thankful for SO many blessings......... I am thankful for the honor and joy God has given me and for LETTING me be a mother to His children. They all are His, after all, only on loan to us here on earth. I pray everyday that I His desire and make the decisions for them that He would have me make..... Happy Mother's Day to you all!


My first blessing, Logan. He was 2 years old here, and this is my favorite picture of him... I was only 24 when I had him, and at times I couldn't believe that God was actually trusting me with THIS PERSON. This little man.... this precious child.

Ahhhhhh, my little Hayden at 9 months old. He was the sweetest baby I've ever had and still is! He was such a mama's baby and tiny just like Essie is..... He honestly was so beautiful the moment he was born that he took my breath away.......

This is my first moment with Anne Pearce as her mama...... I can still feel the joy in my heart I felt at that moment. This was the little girl I had prayed and longed for in my heart for years. Here she was. Sometimes I still can't believe it.....

The joy returned soon after as I met Essie for the first time..... Such an expected miracle she is! We thought we were done (at least for a little while), but God had other plans for this little one. She is surely one of His. He chose to save Essie from what would surely have been horrible circumstances. This is the moment I became her mama......