Mothers Day 2019

I am blessed to have so many wonderful women in my life who have shown me by example who I want to be and how I can live a great life.  

Grandma Chandler is one of my greatest friends.  We talk on the phone about everything from current Tv shows to the day she went shopping for her wedding dress.  The thought of her, her apartment, brings me comfort in my hard times.  My childhood years there playing her hats and scarves, her music box with the broken ballerina that I thought was so romantic (I am Anne Shirley), Shirley temple movies, special sleepovers at her house are precious and sustaining memories. 

For this family history class, I interviewed my Grandma about her mother.  I learned so much about Wanda Stowell.  My favorite thing about the conversation was hearing Grandma become a little girl again talking about her mother.  She said that her children were everything to her.  Before Wanda died, she had written a letter to her children to be read at her funeral where she expressed her pride in them and who they had become and how grateful she was for each of them.  Wanda led a wonderful and fulfilled life full of love and lasting relationships.  Grandma told me a special story about her parents and their love for each other and hearing the admiration in her voice as she said “Have you ever heard of anything so sweet in your life?” was priceless.  Seeing her as a little girl talking about her parents. 

Many of the things I love most about Andrew- his selflessness, the way he treats the people he loves…- came from being raised by a mother like Bonnie.  I see that in him and I whenever I do my mind goes to her and how grateful I am that he is who he is because she is who she is.  I remember seeing her for the first time when I first got off the airplane in Alaska to meet them, walking towards her and seeing tears in her eyes, those tears welcoming me into the family as a daughter.  We have had our moments of awkwardness with each other but no matter what I have felt loved by her and isn’t that what motherhood is?  Love no matter what.  I’m grateful for her and I’m grateful my kids have her for a grandma.  Her influence is felt in their life, in part, through Andrew being their dad.

My Grandma Hanaike has been another constant in my life.  I’ve recently been interviewing her every time we visit home and her life stories are so interesting to me.  I’m getting to know her in an amazing way and I’m so grateful.  One of my favorite memories of her is her bedroom on Christmas Eve.  Christmas Eve was always one of the main highlights of Christmas.  All of us cousins would hang out in Grandmas room watching Tv, her books and dolls, blankets and pillows all round, sneaking (with her permission) her Andes chocolate mints from her side table.  Her house was warm and smelled like food and we could always talk about black and white movies.  Her voice may be my favorite thing about her, a cross between Mama Odie from Princess and the Frog, Grandma Tala from Moana, and Mama Coco from Coco.  Her voice and the way she tells a story.  That’s my favorite thing about her.

And of course, my mom.  The person who is there for us her kids through all of life, the good and bad.  Her concern is influential.  Her love is longsuffering.  Her example is sincere.  My mom has been good at “service to the one” as President Monson put it.  But most of the time that one was one of her kids.  I have been thinking about that phrase and service in general and I feel like what good is service if it is not happening with the people you have the most contact with, the most influence over.  She made me feel special every time she made chocolate chip cookies- because she always made non-chocolate ones for me.  I was the only person in the family who didn’t like chocolate chips cookies and she always made a few of a different kind just for me.  It’s such a small thing and something I told her sometimes that she didn’t need to go to the trouble- but the fact that she still always did was my secret hope that she always fulfilled.  For some reason it made me feel special and remembered. 

Yes, I have had the best grandmas in the world, the best mother in the world and now my kids have the best grandmas in the world too. 

Andrew and I come from some lines of really strong women.  Our son and daughters will always know that.  

And now here is a little tribute to my years of motherhood:

when I turned around at the store

that one time when we had six kids to our name

prayer time