My Mom

Let me just say ahead of time...

sorry Mom.

hee hee hee hee...

(oh, the glorious gut giggle)

I was thinking about my mom the other day.

Up until 7 years ago, she was someone I saw almost every day.

Living this far away definitely has it's downsides.

I realize how much I took her for granted.

And it makes me miss her more.

Why do I love my mom?

Well, many who may read this post will know her.

But, some won't.

So, at the risk of embarrassing her, I thought 

I would do a post about her.

My Mom.

Ruth Ann Evenson

I don't believe great mothers are just born.

I believe great mothers are created by years of personal experiences that mold and shape them into great women.

And I firmly believe that is how my mom became a great mother.

She was born into somewhat difficult circumstances.

She didn't have many things that others around her had.

Yet, she was surrounded by some who would have a profound impact on her life.

These are my great-grandparents,

Albert and Veronica Glaubitz.

I was named after her.

They were a very important part of my mom's life, and I am grateful for their influence on her.

I believe that their influence is a large part of what made my mom a great mother.

My mom went above and beyond to make sure we had a great childhood. 

And we did.

I, personally, feel like I had the very BEST childhood.

My parents made great sacrifices to make sure that happened.

And I will always be grateful to them for that.

Any one who knew my mom when I was growing up, knows EXACTLY what kind of mom she was.

She got up every morning, sometimes in freezing Wyoming blizzards, and did a paper route.

We all took turns getting up early and wrapping newspapers.

We loaded up our old VW bug with the papers, got in the car with my mom and would go deliver the papers.

I remember some mornings were so cold, that as the passenger, your responsibility was to take the ice scraper and keep the inside of the windows scraped. 

To keep the windows from fogging up, we would have to keep the windows cracked a bit.

The car was older, so I remember the heater not working very well.

I remember being very cold, with cold aching hands.

It was miserable.

As a child, I remember thinking many times how grateful I was that we all took turns.

Now, as an adult, I am filled with gratitude as I realize that my mom never got a break. 

She had to go EVERY day.

I don't ever remember her complaining about it.

She did this because it was something she could do to help. 

She made that sacrifice for us.

She is a great mother.

My mom was very frugal.

She was a crazy coupon lady.

And she had a newspaper route, so we had access to TONS of coupons!

She would get our piles organized and we would all start cutting.

CRAZY CUTTING.

There's no possible way to let you know exactly what our crazy couponing was like.

I look back on that now and it just makes me smile.

 My mom loves her kids.

All TEN of us.

She made our clothes, we had matching home-sewn Christmas nightgowns, she made our stockings, she made our dolls, our blankets and even made some AWESOME Barbie clothes.

She planted a garden every year, and we learned to work in that garden.

She made homemade bread...in those funny big soup cans.

She made homemade yogurt, granola, beef jerky, canned fruit, canned pickles, and canned everything else she could get her hands on. 

She made homemade candy at Christmas, and homemade costumes at Halloween.

She made the cutest birthday cakes.

Then when we got older, she made our beautiful wedding cakes.

On Christmas morning, our tree was full of presents, and many of them were ones that my mom had stayed up late at night making for us. And they were made with love.

She can look at something and know how to fix it. 

She can look at a couch and whip out a slipcover for it in no time flat.

She can create anything. 

(She will disagree with this, but to that I say, "Don't tell a lie Mom.")

hahaha!

She tolerated every pet imaginable.

Including the many strays I walked through the front door with.

There was always room for them.

Actually, there was always room for ANY stray, including friends, visitors, and families who needed our help.

She created traditions for us, that live on today in our own families.

As we've all gotten older, she has helped create new traditions that fit with our growing family.

Her family has been her life. She lives for us.....and we all know it.

And we all love her for it.

She has taught us by her example that sometimes you have to work a little harder because not everything is going to be handed to you.

She taught us to be grateful for what we had.

She has taught by her example to serve others and to always think of someone else first.

My mom's life has been about serving.

She did daycare for YEARS.

She had a home full of her own kids, and then opened it up every morning for many others.

And somehow she magically had enough love for all of us.

And then if that wasn't enough, in her down time she was busy doing something for someone else.

ALWAYS.

She has always loved being the one to give, to uplift, to encourage and to lighten someone else's load.

Being away from my mom has been something that is very hard for me.

But, in many ways it has made me love her more.

It has made me more grateful for her.

And it has made me realize, time and time again, what a great mother she has been.

My mom is incredible

And I'm grateful she's mine.

I love you Mom.