Mothers

I love being Donovan and Chamae's mom. I wish I could take credit for their sweetness, but I think it is just in their nature. Yesterday morning, Donovan had a pocket full of coins and was ready to take them to church. I told them they would probably get distracting so we should put them in his bank until we got home. His exact response was, "But I need to take them and give them to the people that don't have enough money so they can be happy." This little boy is just too much sometimes. How did Heavenly Father fill such a little body with so much compassion for others? I am telling you, he will be our little philanthropist. He is always concerned about how others feel and wants to act on his concerns. I am doing my best to raise him in such a way that he will hold onto that, no matter what others say or do to discourage him. He still has his naughty moments, believe me, but he is one incredible little boy, and he is only 4! I am so excited to see what lies ahead for him. Chamae is so fun. I love to watch her grow and figure things out. She is so tall that she can already swing on her belly and kicks her little legs off the ground to make herself go. She seems too little to be doing that! She is making all kinds of animal noises and loves to mimic what we say. Her favorite is, "Dono, no no." She is already bossing her big brother around! We might have to have another child just to keep her in check! She loves Bradley. If she hears his voice anywhere, she immediately says, "dada?!". The feeling is mutual, she has him wrapped around her finger, but he is still pretty good about getting after her when she's doing something wrong, like hitting. That's her new thing, hitting and laying about it. I don't know why she laughs, we don't laugh when she hits. She can be extremely sweet. She loves to share her snacks and gives some really good wet kisses. I love both of these kids so much. Even though a nap or a break is nice every now and then, I am so glad they're mine!! I also want to mention my own mother. We aren't very affectionate and don't express feelings well in our family, but I am working on it, because my kids are very affectionate and it would be difficult to resist them! My mom is amazing. We don't tell her enough how awesome she is. She may not think so, but she was a great mom and is an amazing grandma. The one thing I hate about Iowa is that my kids don't get to play with their grandparents, especially my mom. She is so good with all of her grand kids and makes time to spend with each of them individually. I get a little jealous that my brother's kids get to spend so much time at my parent's house, but when we are in town, the kids get plenty of attention! I love the time I get to spend talking on the phone with my mom, even though she is busy, she makes time to talk to me when I need another perspective or just need to talk to an adult when Brad is gone. I also love taking runs or walks when we are in town, even though it only started during our most recent trip. I also love going shopping with her. Not just because she always ends up buying me stuff, but because we get a chance to talk. The fact that she usually agrees with me and takes my side doesn't hurt either:) Anyway, happy late Mother's day!