Happy Mother's Day

I love this painting. I think it sums up Mother's Day quite perfectly. I asked for it when I was pregnant with Katie, excited about the connection I would have with my daughter that is special to Mothers and Daughters. As I look at it today, and I think about the women in my life, I understand that this image doesn't just capture Mothers and Daughters, but women in general. 

Today I am grateful for ALL the women in my life who I have been blessed to have a relationship with. I am grateful for Andi, who was there through the darkest years of my life, and continued to love me as her own daughter. I'm grateful for both of my mother-in-laws and the love they have showered me and my children with. I'm grateful for my birth mother and the most important lesson she ever taught me-- no matter what, a mother will ALWAYS love her children. I'm grateful for my friends' moms and their models of mother-daughter relationships. I'm grateful for the female relationships I've had as an adult. The women who have modeled, loved, prayed, shared, and helped me grow as a friend, wife and mother. Today I celebrate, not just mothers, but women in general. God created us in such a unique and special way. Our relationships go beyond blood and draw us together through the heart. Happy Mother's Day to all the women who have prayed for someone, loved someone when they were unlovable, hugged someone, wiped away the tears, and made someone laugh. You are the art of a mother.