First Mother's Day

Mother's Day is about celebrating the role of a mother, and today was my very first Mother's Day as a mother!  Of course, I received a sweet gift "from Ella" (Kyle refused to take credit for it) and got to spend the whole day with my sweet baby girl.  So I'll start with the "good" things!

I got a ring with Ella's birthstone on it to add to the rings with mine and Kyle's birthstones that I got two Christmases ago.  I'm thrilled to add her ring to the collection, but a little sad that the rings don't fit on my fingers again quite yet.  I have a few more pounds to lose before they'll slide on and off easily, but the gift was absolutely perfect!

And, of course, I spent the day with Ella Kate, my heart!  I love her so much and love spending my time with her as much as I can!

But my day was not particularly what everyone would consider "perfect."  Being a mother means playing that role in all situations and at all times.  It means doing what's best for your children.  So what's best for Ella Kate?  Right now what's best for her is for Kyle and I to both work full time, but on different shifts so that one of us is always home with her, neither of us has to take a pay cut, and we don't have to pay for child care right now.  It means that we see very little of each other, but Ella can be at home with two people who know and love her perfectly, she's not exposed to other children's germs, and she gets to bond with both of us.  It means that Kyle had to work all day today, and I was at home alone with Ella.  I also didn't go to visit with family in Rockingham, because I didn't want to drive there alone with Ella, and I didn't want to come home exhausted tonight, making Monday morning even more difficult than Monday mornings usually are. To add to this, Ella is going through her third Wonder Week mental leap (see wonder weeks), making her extremely fussy and difficult to feed.

And my Mother's Day was perfect!

I got to stay at home with my perfect baby, comforting her when she was upset, drinking in her sweet giggles when she was happy, feeding her from a bottle when she was too distracted to nurse, snuggling with her while she napped, and playing the role of mommy, knowing that she was getting the very best of all the things that she needed.  I love being a mommy, especially being HER mommy!

 So, Happy Mother's Day to all the mommy's (especially MY mommy), from Ella Kate and me!