The Power of Moms

Have you heard? I'm their latest groupie. The Power of Moms is "a gathering place for deliberate mothers." And since that's what I *ideally* want to be, I'm all ears.

My friends Karen and Alison went with me to the Park City retreat. It was a day full of information and meeting moms from all over. I even ran into my old China friend, Elisabeth.
We met the Eyre's and their daughters - all wonderful people. And April, who has taught me how to organize my home and my mind. And who told me it was okay that I take naps.

I had to get a picture of Shawni being the photographer. She is so stinkin' cute. I love hearing her talk. This was the first time I heard her sisters, Saren, Sadie, and Charity. I loved them all.
I ate it all up. It was so refreshing to know that many share my desire to make the most of motherhood as well as have similar concerns and struggles. As it turns out, there are others who feel they get lost in the shuffle of taking care of everyone else. There are others who feel like they are running around, overloaded, with little time to focus on the things and people that matter most. In a nutshell, it's a zoo around here and probably in everyone else's house, too.

It was nice to have motherhood treated as a profession. As a teacher, I attended training after training - conferences on end to help me improve my teaching knowledge and abilities. Why not the same for moms? I loved the idea. The basic gist of the day: Not routine parenting but deliberate parenting. Not just surviving the day-to-day but thriving. Making our gerbil-wheel-of-a-life seem not so mundane or ordinary. Purpose, meaning, reflection, and memories.

All of my other ideas will have to come as separate posts, as I figure out how they fit into my life. But for today, I got back on my bandwagon of balance (I lost that in February...just after I patted myself on the back for being a rockstar in January...) and worked a little on the house, played with the boys, and did a few things that I wanted to do. And I didn't even freak out when Gavin had a hard time going to sleep today. That said, I can't say that will be my natural reaction from here on out. I'm a work in progress, you know.

Anywho, check it out. I ordered a few books on Amazon yesterday including Linda Eyre's A Joyful Mother of Children. I'm excited to read it.
This picture reminds me, once again, that I am indeed aging. My goodness.