I thought my mom was mean...

... until I became a mother.  

I love my mom!  She's always been my best cheerleader, guiding me, and listening to me (which I know takes a lot of patience).  I have always felt close to her.

However, there were times I thought... geez, what is her deal!

Here are a few examples of my pre-parent thoughts.

"Why does she say she needs at least a few hours of not talking to children before she goes to bed? Doesn't she love talking to me?"

"Why does she say, 'Stop using my name in vain! You have two parents.' Umm, she's the one I need to talk to."

"What's with her not wanting to share her water and food with me?  Doesn't she like to share everything with me? All the time?!"

Well, now I'm a mother.

And a mother to three. Boys.

Now, I understand that my mother was just a mother.

And being a mother isn't a easy job.

My mother minded self can now relate and thinks...

"Wow! It's been a long, non-stop day of serving, and I need some time to breathe and gear up for doing to all over again tomorrow."

"Hearing your name being said over and over, with a request for something, gets tiring."

"Can't I just have a drink free of kid backwash! Is that too much to ask?"

So, mom, I am starting to realize what it takes to be a mother.  I am sure glad I have you to look to and talk to!  You have done a great job and continue to be a great mother (and grandmother).

And don't get me wrong, I love being a mother. I love my boys.  I wouldn't trade it for the world,

but I don't think there is anything that can prepare you for motherhood.

The feelings of inadequacy, the amount of patience required, the selflessness, but also the love, the joy of seeing their little smiles and watching them learn and grow.  

Hearing them say, "I love you, mom!"

It doesn't get much better than that!

(The only way I could get a pic of these three was to literally hit myself on the head with a toy... it's the only thing that seems to work! Stinkers! :)

Here's reality...

Brody is THREE!

Brody is THREE! 

We started off celebrating with family and friends on Sunday.  Brody said he wanted a Transformers cake, so I delegated that to my brother-in-law Mason, who made an Optimus Prime face.  Brody was super excited.  We had a nacho bar and he got to open some presents.  Pretty simple.  We had friends visiting from out of town, so that it made it a little extra fun.  

On the day of Brody's actual birthday, we brought cupcakes to the park and Orin wrapped up some toys (that we already own) for a "present" for Brody to unwrap.  He even wanted to write him a little Happy Birthday card which was cute!

But, what really made Brody's birthday fun was...

DISNEYLAND! 

We went the day after his birthday, but kept telling him it was for his birthday! He got his free birthday button just to make things official! 

We went with our friends Brandon & Brittany, Brad & Tonya, and Mese & Anna met up with us too.

We hadn't been to Disneyland in a year, maybe two? And this was Brody's first time.  Wyatt stayed behind with Melina, so we were free to just ride the rides, which made it so much easier!

The Buzz Lightyear ride was probably the favorite, but they loved Dumbo, Autotopia, Nemo.  They were not so thrilled about Pirates, Haunted Mansion or Space Mountain (Orin was tall enough, but as you can see from the top right picture below, he wasn't a fan! The ride stopped and the lights went on, and he asks me, "Mom. Will we ever make it back to Earth?"  He also was then figuring out that we weren't really going into space after all.  We got to ride a second time, since the ride had stopped on us, and he was brave, but definitely ready to get off!)

It was really such a fun day.  Shawn got his churros, the boys got to go on rides, I just love the details and atmosphere of Disney, oh and the Dole pineapple sundaes! Yum! 

Brody is such a little spazz! He is just too fun!  I feel very lucky to have this special little boy!  He is fun, independent, smart, funny and full of energy!

Growing up, my parents would always do a video interview on our birthday.  I've tried to keep the tradition, but haven't been good about posting it.  Here's what Brody said.  Maybe I'll try to post it too. 

Interview with Brody:

What's your name? Brody

What's your full name? Brodster, Brody Brodster, Brody Patterson

How old are you? (shows three fingers) 

How many fingers is that? A lot. 18.

What's your favorite color? Red

What's your favorite superhero? Batman

Who are your friends? I don't know. Pam's kids. Owen, Mya, Lu, Gweny, Mese, Sila, Nani.

What's your favorite show? Busytown

What's your favorite movie? Lion King

What is your favorite food? Pizza, apples, and quesidillas

What is your favorite treat? Costco treats

What is your favorite dessert? Green apples, McDonald's chocolate ice cream cones

What is your favorite thing to do? Poop in the toilet

What is your favorite thing to play? Army game

Where is your favorite place to go? To McDonald's

What are you scared of? skeleton

What makes you happy? Playing with friends

What makes you sad? Orin hitting me

What's something you love? Playing games (hide and seek) and I love to do tricks (rolly polly trick)

Date Night

So on Wednesday night, when Shawn heard I had enrichment night, he told the boys that they were going to have a special "guys night!" He whispered his fun plans and told them to not tell me (they love that)!  Pizza was ordered and they watched Star Wars (the boys actually have never seen it... they were sooo excited)!  Well...

Shawn went on a camp out with the scouts... So, I of course started my own whispering about our "date night!"  I needed to top dad!  

 Just as a side note, we went hiking a while back when my parents came to visit.  As we were going up the mountain, we heard a low growl in the mountains.  We, of course, meaning mostly my mom and I, were quite concerned and quickly headed back down!  The boys were pretty excited about the idea that they thought they heard a "mountain lion" or "bobcat" (really, we have no idea)!  Anyway, as Shawn was leaving they were yelling to him...

Orin: "Be careful, dad! Heed the warning! Watch out for lions!" 

Brody: "Watch out for tigers! They growl!"

And with that loving caution, Shawn was gone for the night... and we were ready to party.  We headed to the park with friends/family.  Then, got home and started a movie in mom's bed! That's right... we planned a sleep over! (much better than the unplanned ones that seem to happen too regularly, when scared little boys try to sneak in our room).  I convinced them we should watch Tangled since it has a girl and a boy in it.  

As soon as we put Wyatt to bed, we were hot tubbin' it!  They were super excited.  We (meaning I) also consumed an unhealthy amount of Starburst Jelly beans... a weakness of mine! 

 I even let them eat pop corn in my bed! What's a sleep over without a movie & pop corn.
Boy, am I lucky to have these little men for dates! :)

Be Mine

I have a blog post that I've written (or more hoped to write) in my mind for years, and well, just haven't typed it out! Basically, it's about my "retirement" from teaching (this year).  Anyway, I was thinking about this post again on Valentine's day, because as a teacher, I always had around 30 Valentines (except the year I taught at BHS, a bit more awkward trying to pass out Valentines to teenagers!)

 (Kissy face Ory, V-day 2010)

Look at that loot! Lots of those chocolate boxes, stuffed animals, fake flowers, snow globes... but it was fun to get a chance to pass out Valentines, and have a "party" with the kids (we'd usually have a Vday shoebox decorating contest). 

However...

this year, since it was my turn to teach preschool, I still got to have a Valentine's day party! Just on a bit smaller scale.  We made Valentine bags (idea taken from the fabulous Pebbles in My Pocket), played musical mats to the music of Orin's favorite... that's right... Justin Bieber (Somebody to Love)! The kids frosted sugar cookies (which they had helped to make), and we played "Don't Eat Pete" which is a game I had never heard of, but found last minute here... gotta love Pinterest.  I was dying watching Orin play! He was so expressive and would slowly pick up the candy with such anticipation, it was just too fun!  They, of course, had to play when dad came home for lunch.  The boys were also spoiled by Pat & Hershel, who showed up with some really fun things!  Cars shake & roll toys, candy, and stuffed dogs! The boys LOVED it!  Shawn & I exchanged cards and that was about it, but it was perfect! 

(Orin was all about the sprinkles, and Brody was very into the placement of the hearts! It's fun to watch them create!)

I have to admit, I've had quite a few "valentines" aka students over the years, but these three just might be the cutest!

the BIG 30

As I have been thinking back over my birthday... I used to wonder where Orin got that "It's not all about you, it's all about me" comment on his 3rd birthday (see here), however, maybe he gets it from me! 

Although, I do have to say I don't feel like I am a diva every birthday... just the major ones! :) At least that's my version of myself! Anyway... I was spoiled!

Breakfast with fresh fruit & flowers! Perfection!

Shawn had court, so I made myself breakfast with my three favorite little men! They look oh so excited that it's my birthday!

Lunch at The Stoppe! My absolute favorite burger! So good, so bad (for you that is)!

Dinner with family & friends... loved the Costco cake... so yummy (thanks Melina)! 

(I look creepy in this pic! Yikes... beauty wises my 30s have been a rough start... postpartum is not looking good on me!)

Amazing gifts... I felt so spoiled!! (shoes, home decor, pedicure, See's California Brittle, White Chocolate Raspberry cupcake from Martha Greens... my friends know me well)!

 And it doesn't stop there...

Shawn sent me to the SPA! ALL DAY! YAY!!!!!!

 It was the absolute PERFECT day! 80 degree weather... and completely relaxing & carefree (I had almost forgotten that was possible)! 

We started our day with a Swedish massage, then joined in for some water aerobics, after which we flowed in rafts for about an hour.  No children to worry about drowning, no snacks to hand out... it was heaven! I am pretty sure we said the phrase, "This is amazing!" Like 50 times!

We then met up with Anna & her sister Colette, and ate lunch.  You could just order what you wanted and the food was amazing as well!

We then moved on to mineral baths, mud baths (which was sooo fun, my kids were jealous when I showed them pics), and then what they call The Grotto.  You go down into a "cave" and they paint you with this coconut oil, shea butter, aloe vera mixture & get to relax in a warm cave, then shower, then have apples & water in a waterfall cave... ahhhhh!

Johanna & I then made sure we went in every pool/hot tub.  They have these ones where you are supposed to jump from a super hot bath, to a super cold bath (55-60 degrees) and it's supposed to do something good for you... shock your system or something.  I HATE cold water (I get that from my dad!) however, in the spirit of adventure, we took the "plunge!" And not just once, but back and forth like SIX times.  My body was super tingly each time- hypothermia? :) 

Before we left, we enjoyed hot tubs, saunas, and steam rooms.

The day was incredible. 

As soon as I got home, my boys came running up to me and said, "We missed you mom!" It made me realize just how lucky I am this year.  It was so, so, so nice to get away from 8-5, but I was so grateful that I no longer leave them each day like I used to when I worked.  

Even a day at the spa doesn't beat that!  

(Although it was kind of close)!

Farewell 20's

I am 30.
I totally felt like this was a big deal...
and so I did what any mature, very soon to be thirty year old would do...
I acted, humm, how should I put it... a bit dramatically?! Shawn had planned some surprises, but as the days got nearer my birthday... I was wondering what was up! You see, Shawn has spoiled me in the past, so I blame him for my behavior! :) So although I spoiled the surprise (he finally told me), I had a fantastic birthday, which I will post about next (I'm sure my husband was happy when it was over)!
Being 30 is not a big deal...
and in honor of this new milestone, I thought it would be fun to look back over my 20s... it seems like it was forever ago, yet only yesterday (isn't time funny that way)! It was so fun looking back through pictures of the past ten years.  First of all, I miss having developed photos!  I loved being able to actually flip through pictures, so my goal this year is to actually develop some pictures from the past 5+ years. It seems strange that I didn't even own a digital camera in my early 20s! (Oh how I miss the excitement of picking up that roll of film from the developer... another goal... dust of my old film cameras)!

When I was looking for this pic, I thought it was my birthday, but it's actually my cousins (a month after mine... so I'm just over 20)! The funny thing about this picture is that there is Shawn... a few weeks after our first date & although I thought he was fun to hang out with, I was not interested (oh how things changed... a year later)!

Fishlake, UT with some fabulous college friends!

BYU Hawaii summer 2002... working at the PCC... not as a dancer... but a greeter... plate scrapper for pigs...    much less glamourous!

Vegas trip, when I realized I did actually like Shawn (he refused to come & I was totally bugged by that)... Valentine's weekend 2003

Started dating Shawn sometime after my 21st birthday... lucky me he was still available! :)

Study Abroad summer 2003

Shawn came to Cincinnati & then drove with my family to Florida for Christmas and...

He still decided to marry me! January 16, 2004

College graduation April 2004 with my cousin & grandparents (my grandpa passed away in August of that year :(

June 5, 2004 

Best day of my life (so cliche yet true!)

Honeymoon cruise to Mexico... ahhh! So ready for another honeymoon! :)

23rd birthday

Living large in our single wide!

First year teaching... fourth grade, Geneva Elementary, Orem, UT... August 2004... such a bad pic, but I have hardly any of me teaching without kids in them!

Our first anniversary... on a weekend cruise!

My first Gardner family reunion in Island Park, ID

Playa del Carmen, Mexico 2006

Just to embarrass myself, first pregnancy... and birth of baby Orin! July 30, 2007

First beach trip with our little man... My first realization that going to the beach will never be the same (pretty sure he screamed a good part of it)!

Disneyland October 2007 (Orin has been three times... other boys never... got to love student loans, full time jobs!)

26th birthday!

Oahu, HI visiting Westbrook clam... so jealous of them!

Orin's 1st birthday

My sister leaving for her mission, June 2008

27th birthday

Last day in our apartment... moved to our house & had Brody the same day! March 20th, 2009

My adventures while Shawn studied for the BAR (at least one of the times)... Zions, UT... summer 2009

Sedona, AZ same trip

Gardner reunion Island Park, ID (& Yellowstone) July, 2009

Thanksgiving 2009... just because they're cute!

Brody's 1st birthday, 2010

My favorite year teaching! Miss those girls!

Much needed trip to Cincinnati, summer 2010

My ten year reunion with some amazing friends! Fall 2010

My gorgeous sister's wedding, April 2011

 

Yeap, just as huge... third pregnancy!

Third boy, Wyatt is born May 16, 2011

Gardner reunion, Zions, UT July 2011

Trip to Fish Lake, and Provo... go Uncle Jake! September 2011

Christmas in Scottsdale, AZ 2011

Three of my favorite miracles of my 20s!

Looking back over these past ten years, I realize just how amazing life really is... there have been ups and downs, but I am grateful for this crazy life I have.  Can't wait to see what the 30's bring!