Mother's Day

I've had a different outlook on Mother's Day for the past two years. Mother's Day 2011, I was pregnant for the first time and bursting with joy. By Mother's Day 2012, I had two miscarriages and didn't really want to acknowledge the day. Four miscarriages later, here we are at Mother's Day 2013 and I have a bit of a different view.  It is a day to celebrate Mothers, each and every kind of mother. While I'm not up all night with round the clock feedings or chasing a toddler around the house, I have experienced some of the most real emotions that a mother can. Mother's Day this year also falls on our anniversary (and the husband's birthday). I got a necklace that serves as a visual representation of our story and also allows me to carry our little ones around with us at all times. The silver mom charm is self explanatory. I have three Heavenly babies waiting on me. The gold leaf charm is actually called the grow charm. This is because I am confident that God is still growing us and shaping us throughout all of this. The bird charm is because all of our babies left to be with their Heavenly Father. The cross serves as the reason we can still have hope. We serve a God who knows our pain and loves us through it. Because of the cross, we can rest assured that the best is yet to come and death truly has not won. Lastly, there are three little birthstones. January for baby 1, August for baby 2 and October for baby 3. I had a hard time deciding on whether I should get 3 or 4 given that medically, I've had four miscarriages. The third one was a chemical pregnancy at 4.5 weeks, so we never got an ultrasound, saw a heartbeat or had a due date. Because of this, I chose three. I may change my mind down the road, but this seemed right for now. I fully expect to get comments and questions about it from strangers who don't know our story and will ask me about my children. I haven't prepared the perfect response to give in the Publix checkout line or to well-intentioned coworkers, but will answer honestly as the questions come. While I don't have pictures of my kids on my phone or in my wallet (does anyone honestly still do that?), I can wear this and feel as though they are still a part of me.

All of the charms except the bird are from Stella and Dot. If you need a stylist, I can recommend Amanda Luton. She is a former coworker of mine and is the best :)