Sometimes...

...Mother's Day means being woken up at an ungodly hour being jumped on by four kids.

...Mother's Day means grumpy kids pitching fits before church.

...Mother's Day means spilling rice out of handmade flower pots more than once.

...Mother's Day means cleaning up various bathroom accidents multiple times.

...Mother's Day means not being a perfect mom and getting grouchy and wishing she hadn't been.

...Mother's Day means the Boy making faces like this during half of our pictures:

It's not glamorous. And it's not always sweet.

But just like getting a perfect shot like this one in all the craziness, that's what being a mom is like. Those random, amazing moments of clarity that really and truly balance out the insane, and remind me that this is more than a job or a routine... it's who I am and who I was created to be. 

So sometimes Mother's Day means painting tiny toes pink.

And getting handmade cards and gifts that say things like, "You ar the best mom evr!" 

And my husband trying hard to make sure the load is off of me for a day. 

And swinging in a hammock with your scared 4 year old while a thunderstorm rolls in. 

And laughing at your kids call "Old Maid," "Old Navy/Old Mole/Old Brain" as they figure out how to play it. 

And painting white paint on little hands to make something to remember their smallness.

It is a great gift to be a mom. There are way too many days when I completely forget that. But I am really, really grateful for being called mama.