Archive for the ‘celebrate it’ Category

“All that I am or ever hope to be I owe to my Angel Mother.”  -Abraham Lincoln

I just love Abraham Lincoln.  And judging by how he turned out, his mother must have been a wonderful woman.

I have been thinking a lot about what it means to be Mother.  And what a powerful influence they can be.  I wonder what my legacy will be with my own children.  One thing I know for sure, I was blessed with a wonderful mother.  She has taught me so much, and I am very grateful.

My Mom has taught me many practical things about being a wife, mother and homemaker.  And she has also taught me a lot about living and happiness.

In honor of Mother’s Day, I want to share with you a top ten list of the best things my Mom has taught me:

1.  Find your passion and live it.  She found quilting and many years and hundreds of quilts later, she still can’t sleep at night when she is excited about a new project.  Quilting has gotten her through good times and bad.  She takes all the sorrow and joy in her life and puts it into her quilts.  Having a passion is one of the best ways to stay happy.

2.  Plan your meals a week at a time and pick up everything you need for the week in one trip to the store.  You save money and a whole lot of stress.

3.  Family is the most important thing in the world.  When the chips are down, they will always love you and come through for you.

4.  Traditions help to make life special.

5.  Take the time to teach your children how to really work.  It takes a lot longer to teach your four year old to sort dirty laundry… but it will pay dividends down the road.

6.  Make your dinner in the morning.  My Mom always prepared everything she needed for dinner in the morning.  Whether it was making the soup or marinating the chicken… she would chop, mix and prepare it early.  In her words, “Five o’clock is the most hectic time of the day, don’t leave your cooking until then.”  On the days I take my Mom’s advice and get it done early, my whole day seems to work better.

7.  Learn to love what’s simple… love simple food, simple pleasures and the rewards of hard work.

8.  Never worry about what hasn’t happened.  “You can’t borrow problems” she always says.  And she is right.  There are many things in my life I’ve spent time worrying about, that never came to be.  She taught me to be prepared and let it go.

9.  Learn to make delicious food and your home will never be empty.

10.  Enjoy the journey instead of the destination.  My Mom loves to hand quilt.  Many quilters don’t have the time or patience for it, but she loves making each stitch.  She also loves to fold warm laundry.  She loves to scrub her sinks.  She loves to roll out dough.  She has taught me that happiness can be found if you learn to love the things you have to do everyday.

Mom, thank you for all you have taught me.  I love you.

Mother’s Day is next Sunday!  Have you decided what you are giving your Mother?  My Mom has everything she needs. What she really loves are gifts from the heart.  When you make a gift you not only can save money, you make it more meaningful.  If you are still undecided as to what to give your Mom… here are a three ideas that might inspire you:

1.  A “Thoughtful” Scrapbook – Make your Mother a scrapbook full of messages written by her family.

That’s my Grandpa Morgan and Mom as a little girl on the cover.  I used a Chocolate Linen Album from Making Memories.  Since the scrapbook is the most expensive part of the gift, you can buy it on sale with 40% or 50% off coupon.

On the first page, I found a quote that reminded me of my Mom…

Then we all wrote notes to my mom… our favorite thing about Mom and our favorite memory.  Everyone emailed me their message.  I formatted the messages and printed them on nice paper.

We included pictures of each Grandchild taken with their favorite quilt made by Nan… (my Mom.)  The pictures above are my darling nephews, Will and Malik.

2. Make Picnic Tablecloth that she will love:

My husband’s family got together this year to put our hand prints on a tablecloth for my Mother in Law, Kit.  We purchased an inexpensive white tablecloth from Target.  Pre-wash the tablecloth before starting.  Using acrylic paints mixed with an additive that makes it good for fabrics- Golden Acryl Med 8oz Gac-900 Acrylic Heatset— we painted each hand with the paint using a foam brush.  This works much better than dipping the hand in paint.  Just be sure to be a little generous with the paint when brushing it on the hand.  Also, wear old clothes- because this paint is permanent.  If you are doing kid’s prints, hold their wrist.  “Stamp” the hand on the cloth, making sure to press down gently on the hand and each finger to make sure the whole hand prints on the cloth.  Then write the name with a fabric pen.  Part of the charm is that everyone wrote their own name.  I am sewing a darling border around the edge of the cloth.  I know she will love setting her picnic table with this wonderful tablecloth.

3.  Organize her Recipes into a book.  My Mom’s recipes used to be a big messy pile of papers.  She knew exactly which scrap of paper that favorite recipe was on… but it took her ten minutes to sort through the pile to find it… until last Mother’s Day that is.  That’s when my sister-in-law, Marcie and my sister, Brooke intervened.  It took them weeks to organize that big pile.  It was a lifetime of collecting recipes!  They even typed some that were in bad shape.  Every recipe was placed in a plastic sleeve, they used photo sleeves and full size sleeves for both sizes of recipes.  The result is not only practical… it is also darling.  It was an act of love that my Mom is grateful for every time she reaches for a recipe and finds it quickly.

One of my favorite feature’s was the “Family Favorites” section:

These are just a few ideas for Mother’s Day.  I will share a few more during the rest of the week.  I just love Mother’s Day… and not just because my husband makes me breakfast.  I love the chance to tell the wonderful women in my life how much I love them.  I would love to hear your Mother’s Day gift from the heart ideas…