Mother's Day

I have been wondering what I could do to update my blog. I like to keep it current but it seems my life has been so ordinary that to post anything about myself, the kids or Dennis would be incredibly boring. Then in thinking about Mother's Day coming up I thought perhaps a tribute to my mom would be just right. (Mom I know you are a silent watcher so this is for you).

This first picture is of my mom when the family lived in San Francisco. Not sure if it was before or after I was born, but I do know that at the time she was a mother of five (with three more to come). That in itself is amazing! The fact that we all grew up to be functioning, mostly sane adults with normal lives of our own is another tribute to my mom (dad too, but it's not his day).

I think my mother was beautiful. She had wicked red hair, a small waist, bird legs--a petite fireball at 5'3" (maybe). She has since shrunk down to where I'm not sure she's even 5 feet tall--still a fireball.

Mom has always seemd serious and reserved and yet, I can remember occasions growing up where we sat around the dinner table laughing until somebody almost wet their pants. In her own quiet way she has supported, nurtured and encouraged all of us to be the best we can be. Sure there have been disappointing choices that all of us have made in our lives, but through it all mom has been a quiet force of love, a steady rock in any storm, a powerful example of faith & strength, an anchor that has held us all together as a family. Not an easy feat with 8 different personalities (9 if you include dad) all vying for attention, love, support, etc. I for one never felt any lack or favoritism. Her love encompasses us all equally in our own right.

We were never a rich family by any stretch of the imagination, but it never seemed like we were lacking. Mom knew how to stretch a dollar to it's limit, get the most mileage out of any shopping trip to the store, make the most out of any time available. She was hard, okay impossible to keep up with.

I know she harbors some regrets/guilt about being a working mom when my younger sisters and I were growing up, but I look at that with pride, wonder, amazement. It helped me get through my own stint of being a working mom with small kids. I knew that if my mom could do it and under much harder circumstances than mine, I could too. Her example helped me get through and appreciate just how really hard trying to do it all is. I wish I could say that I was half the hard worker that she is. I am a mere shadow of her. Thanks mom for being such a great example and giving me strength.

You'll notice that the pictures I have included have only been of mom with me and my sisters. The first is my two older sisters Karen & Roberta, who are amazing mom's (and now grandmas) in their own right. Life has not been a breeze for either one. There have been disappointments and hardships, but both have shown amazing strength and resilience. They are women of faith, love, devotion and virtue. They make me laugh, smile, cry and thank God for their presence in my life. I feel blessed to be their sister.

The 3rd picture is me with my younger sisters. "The three little girls" as we were called. Kind of a collective. My younger sisters are also amazing. The are talented, funny, and caring. Aleta is the mother of six fabulous kids who she mother's with incredible serenity. She is the most quiet of all the outspoken Vaden girls, but don't let that quiet/serenity fool you, it masks a magnitude of inner strength and faith that you would be hard pressed to find in any person. Now in this Mother's Day tribute Celiac (not her real name of course) would argue that she is not a mother. I would beg to differ. Although life has not blessed her with children of her own, she has been a mother, friend, mentor, confidant, blessing to pretty much every one of her neices and nephews (and her own siblings) at some point in their life. I think each and every one of them know that she loves them and that she is there for them. There are a few I think who can honestly say that without her love/support things would be much different in their lives. That is something you cannot discount or make light of. She has also been that same beacon of strength and hope for many a friend in her life. She is a mother in the truest sense of the word!

We are all products of one (and I know I keep using the same word) amazing mother. Each of us can look at ourselves and see traits, characteristics, strengths, habits, and personality we have gotten from our mother--whether gentically or through example. I am incredibly blessed to have such women in my life!

EE Update

Not that there is too much exciting to report. I had been using a steroid inhaler to "bring down the swelling" in my esophagus. The doctor decided to switch me over to Prednazone (?) which is a stronger steroid. One of the women I visit teach is a nurse and she said if I didn't want them she'd take them. Apparently, she had to take them for an ear infection once and she said they really gave her a zip. She lost 15 pounds and felt like she was thirty again. I guess it remains to be seen what side effect it will have for me--probably not a loss of 15 pounds (darn!). I have also made an appointment to see an allergist. Since EE is primarily allergy based it seems to make sense to me that in order to keep it from cropping up again you would need to try and find out what made it happen in the first place. Seems to me the steroids would only treat the symptoms not the cause. So that's pretty much the deal on the esophagus front. I'm sure you were all waiting with baited breath for that thrilling update.

Oh and the pictures, that's just so there was something to make this blog entry more interesting. This is what happens when Spencer takes his camera to school. At least he has some other people in the pictures with him instead of his usual "self-portraits". In the top picture, that IS one of his favorite facial expressions to "make". Bottom is two of his good friends Imani and Cailey. There several pictures in this vein. At school he can always be found in a flock of girls. I have candy on my desk now and he and a group of girls come visit me daily. Of course, the word is spreading and the crowd keeps getting bigger so I don't know how long I can afford to feed them all. Good thing there is only a few more weeks of school!