WE ALL HAVE STORIES TO TELL: MEET ROBIN FERGUSON-LESSONS OF MOTHERHOOD

Hello all! My name is Robin Ferguson and I blog over at Garage Sales R Us.

I am so excited to be here on Kimberly's blog today to talk about some 

lessons that I have learned from Motherhood. Hope you enjoy my story!

When I started my year from Hell (Click Here to read),  I was  physically exhausted, emotionally drained, mentally fried and spiritually weak. Before I get into the details of this last year, I want to rewind to 3 years ago. I was a new mother of a collicy newborn. Little Miss Paisley was the most beautiful surprise any mother could ask for. However, I was an unprepared mother of two and  it was hard! Motherhood, although in my opinion the most rewarding thing you will ever do, can be extremely difficult at times. At 6 months Paisley became even more difficult.  She literally would not let me put her down. I would have to go and set her in her crib and let her scream bloody murder just so I could get the dishes done. She was a sensitive little girl and I was on the verge of an emotional breakdown. I started rocking her to sleep every evening. I don't know if it was more to soothe her or comfort myself. I just wanted to be loved and this little girl would lay her head on my chest and fall asleep every night. I loved every second of it. 

Although I knew she loved me and I was all she wanted I felt like she hated me all at the same time. She was very temperamental. There were nights when I rocked her that I could tell she was upset. I never knew why but of course I felt like she was mad at me. On those nights I always tried to hold her a little closer but she wouldn't have it. She would sit on my lap and let me rock her but she would refuse to let me wrap my arms around her. So I would rock with my arms at my sides. There was even a point when I started avoiding making eye contact with her because the second we met eyes she would start to cry for me.  I felt like a terrible mother. I was avoiding my baby. One evening while I sat by my husband on the couch, I couldn't hold it in any longer. I started to cry. Being a mother and a wife was too hard and I didn't want to do it anymore.  All I wanted to do was hop on a motorcycle, ride off into the sunset and never return. When I finally looked at him through my tears, his eyes were wide and his jaw gaping open. He had no earthly idea what to say. I still don't think he comprehends how serious I was at the time but he dried my tears and sent me out for some mommy time. 

At that point I realized the importance of letting the small things go and laughing about it.  I did my best to laugh things off.  Thats all I could do to keep myself  from crying. Between eating spoonfuls of dirt because they were "chocolate", pulling cockroach legs out of mouths, nail polish spills, lots of cracks eggs, decorating bodies with pens and markers, and self given hair cuts. I got pretty good at laughing off the little things. 

During the beginning stages of potty training, I was cleaning the house and had the back door open while the kids played outside. As I came walking down the stairs, I saw Paisley squatting on my back porch doing BUSINESS that should never be done outside unless you are in the woods and absolutely can not hold it any longer. 

My Facebook post is as  follows:

To all those mothers out there who always post about all the cute and sweet things your children do, I hate/envy you. My kid just literally took a dump on the back porch. How about that for cute and sweet? 

I remember about a year and a half after Paisley was born, I saw my OBGYN that delivered Paisley at Costco.  The second I saw him I went straight into a Walter Mitty moment. I imagined myself taking her from my husbands arms, walking toward him while holding her out away from my body as if she had just had the biggest blow out ever. As I set her in his arms I said, "Here, take her back." As I came back from my day dream, I chuckled at my somewhat twisted humor. At least she was cute. That really was the only reason I was keeping her. ;) 

Today As I watch women in the same stage of life I was in not to long ago, literally struggling to stay sane and keep their children alive (because some days its really hard to do it all at the same time)  I think about a story my neighbor and friend told me about a women checking out at the grocery store with her little children(standing in any line with children = MAJOR stress). Each of her children were unhappy and vocal about it. She tried to calm them but to no avail.  While most people would have been annoyed at the sound of crying children and the constant begging and whining.  One women leaned over to her and said "You hang in there Warrior, only 3 more hours till bed time." 

I love this! At some point, don't we all feel like life is a war zone? 

Like we have been wounded and we are loosing blood fast? 

My amazing sister who graduated from BYU as an English major (and helps me edit all my posts) found An excerpt from War and the Soul, by Edward Tick, Ph.D. About warriors 

(I changed any he's to she's {because thats the say it should have been written anyway, right? :)}) 

A Warrior is not just one who has been to war and returned.  A Warrior has been recognized as a social role that has occurred since the beginning of time. Becoming a warrior is an achievement of character.

What are the characteristics of the Warrior? The ideal Warrior is assertive, active and energized. She is clear-minded, strategic and alert. A warrior uses both body and mind in harmony and cooperation. A warrior is disciplined. A warrior assesses both her own skills and resources and those of her opponent. A warrior is a servant of civilization and its future - guiding, protecting, and passing on information and wisdom. A warrior is devoted to causes she judges to be more important than herself or any personal relationships or gain. Having confronted death, a warrior knows how precious life is and does not abuse or profane it.

I want to break this down a little further. A warrior is:

Assertive, active and energized- any mother with a two year old.

Clear minded- well, at least we all start the day out clear minded but by nap time that clear mind is usually long gone and we are trying to deal with the post-tramatic stress disorders our children give us.

Strategic- how about the way we disguise vegetables within our children's food to make sure they get enough nutrition or finding ways not to wake the sleeping giant that lies within each of our children named, I Am Going To Throw A Fit If I Dont Get My Way and in the way we plan our shower and any other hygiene or personal need during nap time.

Alert- due to the development of hawk eyes searching for any hazardous situations or individuals who may prey on our children.  

 A warrior uses both body and mind in harmony and cooperation- two words, breast feeding. 

Disciplined- in what we spend our money on because instead of buying those cute heels we can no longer wear for fear of tripping and dropping our baby we are buying diapers, butt paste and nipple cream. 

A warrior assesses both his own skills and resources and those of his opponent - aren't we always doing this with our children? How long can this kid scream their lungs out? I cant listen to it any longer. If I give them candy, will they stop? Do you think if I go into stealth mode and just move a tiny little bit at a time maybe they won't wake up and I can finally sneak out of this tiny little bed that I don't even come close to fitting in? 

A warrior is a servant of civilization and its future - guiding, protecting, and passing on information and wisdom- I am pretty sure if you looked up mother in the dictionary this is exactley what it says.  

 A warrior is devoted to causes she judges to be more important than herself or any personal relationships or gain - as mothers we experience this everyday. The needs of our child are always put before our own. Personal relationships? What are those? I can't even remember the last time I even hoped for a normal social life. Babe, the Robinson's would like to hangout tonight. Don't you think that would be fun? Well we have to pack the diaper bag with bottles, diapers, wipes, the bikny, some snack crackers and an extra outfit just in case. Oh, and don't forget the pack n play, the stroller, the carseat, any medicine the baby might need, some duck tape and bubble wrap and ..... Oh heck, it's just easier to stay home. 

Having confronted death, (childbirth) a warrior knows how precious life is and does not abuse or profane it-

Something happens to a mother when she holds her baby for the first time. All of the sudden nothing else in this world matters but that tiny little being in your arms. You finally understand what unconditional love is. You have the best understanding anyone could have about the love our Heavenly Father has for us. You  would do absolutely anything to keep them safe and from that moment on, their happiness is the only thing that you care about. 

Motherhood never came as a piece of cake to me. I am short tempered, I yell, I complain, and I have gotten really good at drowning my children's whiney voices out. There  were a lot of days when all I wanted to do was this.

But at the end of the day, I love those girls more than life itself and wouldn't trade it for the world. 

To all you mothers out there who may have related to this post in some way or another, I want to say this, when you feel you just cant take it anymore, like you want to give up, walk out that door and never return. Remember,  it is only one stage of your life. It will pass. They will grow up fast so BE in the moment and don't let life's difficulties distract you from the happiness that is  right in front of you. Life is short and unpredictable. Never take it for granted. 

This is a poem I wrote after finding out that our little 5 year old niece had a brain tumor that would be removed in the following days.I remember the morning we found out that Jaylie's brain tumor was cancerous. I could not control my feelings. As a mother I couldn't help but put myself in my sister-in-law's shoes and try to understand what She was feeling as she watched her child fight for her life. I was infinately more grateful to be able to step out of her shoes and enjoy my children and their health. After receiving the news I just held my children and cried. For whatever reason I felt the need to write those feelings down so that I could remember them years from now.  I called it Green Pancakes because that morning I was supposed to begin writing my capstone paper for school but found myself unable to think about anything else besides how grateful I was for all the things that drove me nuts about being a mom. I felt the need to enjoy my children and the simplicity of our life here on earth. Instead of starting my capstone paper I made my kids green pancakes and we sat on the floor and laughed and giggled as we ate them together.

Green Pancakes

I made green pancakes today

Simply grateful for one more day

With my sweet and beautiful girls

Ages 2 and 2 months, blue eyes and thick curls

Life is so fragile you never know

When the Lord will say it’s time to go

I am so sorry its taken the experience of one

To realize my blessings and what he has done

He’s given me things I should be grateful for

Life’s little moments, I taken for granted no more

I am so grateful for times I’ve lost my head

So grateful for the crumbs that are in my bed

So grateful for the messes that they make

So grateful for my things that they break

So grateful for tears shed today

So grateful for the price my Lord paid

So grateful that he loved enough to die

My eternal family is what he would buy

So grateful for the stress of each day

So grateful the Lord made it this way

So grateful for the days that they whine

So grateful for just a little more time

So grateful for the sound of their voice

So grateful I was given a choice

To come to this earth and be made a mother

My trials are so easy compared to another

So grateful for their joy and laughter

Their smiles are mine forever after

So grateful for their earthly bodies, I love

Which were sent to me from heaven above

So grateful that our spirits will always live on

Temple ordinances provide an unbreakable bond

So grateful that the Lord has a plan

In time I hope I will understand

So if he must take one of my own

I pray he heals my broken home

So grateful for my eternal family

Together forever I know we’ll live happily

And so with this poem I write today

I thank the Lord for Green pancakes and one more day

 This life is hard. It was meant to be. There will always be tests and trials, that is a fact. The best immunity someone can build to hell (because many of us are already living in hell in one way or another) is to learn to BE in the moment. To BE happy right now despite your hell. Enjoy the happiness of the present and those around you and the difficult trials you are facing wont weigh so heavy on your heart. Do not take for granted the loved ones that surround you. Life can changed in an instant. BE with them. Give them your full attention. Turn your brain off to everything else but them. They deserve YOU, all of YOU. You will never regret creating memories with loved ones. That is what this life is all about.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME KIMBERLY!

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