The Modern Mom

Being a mom is far more exciting and fulfilling than I could have possibly imagined!  I love being able to be the one who gets to snuggle my little boy, see his smiling face as he wakes up from sleeping, and do endless things to see his face light up.  With that being said, I find that there are so many things that distract me from really engaging with my boy.  My intentions are those good motherly take-care-of-your-child ones, and yet I find myself spending too much time on things like facebook and pinterest because I am at a blank as to what else to do.  William is still really young and so I'm not exactly sure what all to do with him throughout the day?  We have our somewhat daily routines, tummy time, pacing the house holding him so he can see things, showing him toys, letting him suck on my fingers (because they're sooo much tastier than his own ;)), feeds and naps, but at the end of the day I still feel like I wish I could have done more with/for him.  Maybe if you're a mom you could throw some suggestions my way on some things to do with my 3 month old.  I just want to make sure that I'm spending my time plugged into the right things, especially my baby boy.  I only get one shot at raising him, and I want to make the most of it.

On another note, completely unrelated to what to do with my 3 month old, I'm going to take a second to vent.  I am a firm believer in taking care of my body.  I'm also a firm believer that there is WAY too much garbage that goes around these days trying to influence how us women see ourselves.  I'm a pinner and I really love all the fun ideas I get from different people and sites... all except for the nasty images that get pinned- the ones that show a picture of a deathly skinny girl in barely any clothes and the caption reads something like, "flatten your belly!" or worse, women's comments like, "I want to look like this!"  I'll be completely honest, such comments make me mad! I want to smack people upside the heads and say, "WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH HAVING A NORMAL HEALTHY, NOT-DEATHLY-SKINNY BODY?!"  I've never been one that's heavy, but I certainly don't fall under the category of being overly skinny- and I don't want to!  I'm thankful for the "thick" or "muscular" thighs I've been blessed with, and I'm thankful for a stomach that has changed so that I could have my beautiful baby boy.  I love working out because it makes me feel happy that I am taking time for myself, relieving stress, and giving myself a realistic personal challenge, NOT because I want to be the next twig photographed in almost no clothing.  I think there is something to be said about being able to accept what you've been given and work with it instead of trying to achieve the gross images of women that most women never will look like unless they do very unhealthy things to themselves.  I'm grateful for my body, and grateful for the things it lets me do.  I'm changing my mind on work outs and am now doing it for ME to challenge MYSELF against MYSELF, not  against anyone else be they friend, family, or picture.  I'm not saying it's bad to push yourself to achieve certain health goals, I'm saying to make them ones that are realistic for YOU and YOUR time of life.  There's a whole lot of self dislike that can be avoided, I think, if we choose to work with what we've got and be grateful for the little accomplishments we achieve every day as we hit the ground running.

There... I'm done... I feel better :)

Testimony

Very early Sunday morning I received sobering news via text message that a dear friend of mine from high school and seminary committed suicide... My heart broke to read those words.  He was a wonderfully talented, kind person who in recent months I'd been telling my husband about.  Since receiving the news, I've had time to deeply ponder and turn to my Heavenly Father in prayer.  My heart has found comfort in knowing that our Heavenly Father understands things far better than we do.  He knows completely all the thoughts, feelings, and intents of our hearts.  He understands the limitations we have, our struggles, and our deep desires for good despite our falling short.  I am endlessly grateful for a Savior who has atoned for much more than just our sins.  The compassionate strength that is available from the atonement blows me away at times.  I am endlessly grateful to have such power available to me, and endlessly grateful that my Savior chose to complete such a daunting task so that I, as well as all mankind, can find pure relief from pain and suffering.  I know that there is angelic healing and comfort that can enter our lives, I've experienced it in very personal ways.  Most of all, I know that somewhere in the vast expanse of space and universe, I have a God who knows and loves me, and who is far closer to me than I can possibly realize.