The Mother Load

After a much needed chat with my sister-in-law Sherrie this weekend we both agreed on one fact of motherhood; when you have children you know they will be work but you don't know that they will be that much work!

  And there's no getting around the fact that no matter how wonderful a dad their father may be, a child relies most on their mother.  Yes, in today's society there are stay-at-home dad's that fulfill this role, but usually it is the mother who knows the little signs and nuances that make up a child's day.

  My husband is a wonderful father but he doesn't know the routine that is inevitably set in the child's mind whether you have one established or not.  I have discovered to my surprise that I have a routine even though I lack a great deal of time management.  Nothing fantastic in my mind but it greatly matters to my son and the dog.  A fact that I have found out after a few Saturdays of my husband kindly offering to let me sleep in and he would take care of things for me.   This is wonderful in theory; but inevitably the dog comes running in a half hour later to wake me because "Daddy" isn't used to letting him out and he knows "Mommy" will know what he needs.  When that is taken care of I hear Ronan howling.  After about five minutes (I'm not real patient I admit) I will go out to see what the fuss is.  Liam will be trying hard to keep him quiet but somehow I usually know what he wants (it varies) and Liam will look at me and say, "that's it?" and I will have to agree that it is a seemingly small need but one that is usually something that we do in our day without thinking about it.

   As this is my first child I often feel very inadequate as a mother.  I never really spent much time with children before having my own and so have very little to rely on.  My mother and mother-in-law are both in another state and my closer girlfriends are not in this time of life yet.   Many days after Ronan is put to bed (sometimes with a bath sometimes without) I will reflect on the day and feel guilty because it seemed to consist mostly of "no's" and temper tantrums.  And then I think, "did I snuggle him enough? Did he feeled loved and cherished today?"

  When all is said and done, one of my greatest purposes in life will be to mold him and love him in a way that he knows God's love and that he was put on earth for a reason. 
  Tomorrow is another day and can be filled with tears and tantrums or giggles and grins; it's up to me to set the standard.

Blessed Beyond Measure

This year has been one of great change and extreme blessings for us. Just over a year ago, on September 19th, we welcomed a beautiful baby boy into our family! God is sooo good! Ronan Patrick Mullane is healthy and happy!

His first year on earth has brought joy and laughter to our home along with the ever more frequent "no" as he explores and pushes boundaries.

This year also included the purchase of our first home in beautiful St Augustine Florida. It sits on almost two acres and is about five minutes from church and the grocery store giving us a "country" feel with all the accessibility of city living. Not to mention we are now only about ten minutes from the beach! Property like this is very hard to come by in St Augustine and we are so thankful that God provided it for us. His hand was there every step of the way and we could not have done it without HIM!

It has not been a year without trials or stresses, but we are reminded every week to "seek the Kingdom of God above all else and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need." Matthew 6:33 NLT. And not a single trial or stress has come that, when handed to The King, has not been taken care of!

As we transition into fall and the time of harvest, it is always a time to reflect on the blessings from above. Truly, life in the Kingdom is the greatest life of all!