Making Moments into Memories

I mentioned in my last post that I would write about what inspired me to re-start my blog. As some of you may know, a few weeks ago a young mother, Sarah Harkins, died unexpectedly. I did not know Sarah, but she graduated from my alma mater, Franciscan University. You can read about her life here. As I said, I didn't know Sarah, but she has very much been a source of heartache, inspiration and prayer for me these last few weeks since her death. She was a woman of great faith, strength, and hope striving every day to lead her family and others to Christ in any way she could. She wrote about her life on her blog The Clay Rosary Girl.

Mother's Day 2014

The sudden and unexpected death of this young mother really struck deep in my heart. As mothers, we are called to be the heart of our family and the heart of this family was just ripped from them with hardly a moment's notice. I ached thinking about having to leave my children without their mother at such a young age. How confused and sad they must be. These children's whole lives were just turned upside down and there was nothing anyone could do about it. Nothing.at.all. Except pray. Prayer and faith is the only thing that saves us in these situations. We beg God for explanation on how such a tragic event could really be His will, yet we don't always get one, except for the answers we get in just having faith. Faith in God is the only answer that we can lean on. Faith that He is writer of the story of our lives. Only He knows how are lives are going to go. He will take care of us as long as we give our lives fully over to Him in complete trust. Needless to say it opened my eyes to how precious and fragile our lives really are and to how quickly life can change, and more importantly how much I need God.

Me and Anthony

As a stay-at-home mom of 4 little ones remembering to "enjoy every moment" is a challenge. The days can be very long and the endless demands of 4 little lives who are completely dependent on me in so many ways can be draining. Since Anthony's birth I have been in "survival" mode. It's that time after a newborn arrives that you do what you gotta do to get through the day.  I am always nursing, changing, holding, nursing, holding, changing. It's a hard time for everyone and doesn't always make for fun days for my bigger kids. Holding a baby (who is no small load at 14 lbs 10 oz at 2 months old) all the time often makes it hard to do things with the older ones as easily as you did before. Sarah's death has jolted me into being sure to enjoy as many moments and memories as I can with my children, if they may not be enjoyable, then to appreciate them for what they are because at least they are moments that I get to spend with them. I want to store these moments as the memories that they are whether or not they are the fun, joyful, inspiring moments of motherhood or the oh so tiring, draining, make you want to cry moments of motherhood, because that's just what they are. These are moments, whether good or bad, I have with my family and I don't want to forget them, so I better write them down. I better bring myself to the foot of the cross with trust and thanks for the time I have with the ones I love, especially my babies.

kissing babies never gets old