20 Lessons I Learned From My Mother

1.  Prayer works, whining doesn't.
2.  TV is bad, books are good.
3.  Some oldies music and a comfy pair of sweats is all you need for a good workout. 
4.  People of a certain political persuasion need to get their heads examined.
5.  Simple is better.
6.  Kids grow fast and it's important to focus on the things that really matter. 
7.  Coffee cakes and coffee tables don't really exist, they're actually called breakfast cakes and tv tables.
8.  The only difference between a person chewing gum and a cow chewing its cud is the intelligent look on the face of the cow. We had this quote hanging on our fridge for years, but alas it was one of the least effective of mom's edicts, since most of us kids have decided that we prefer having minty fresh breath over looking intelligent.
9.  Keeping one night a week set aside for family night is well worth the sacrifice and effort.
10. Our church leaders are called by God.
11.  One pair of tennis shoes and one pair of Sunday shoes is all the footwear you need.  I actually have about five pairs, three of which I wear on a regular basis, which basically makes me a shoe horse according to mom.  
12.  Freckles are angel kisses and nothing to be embarrassed about.
13.  America is a blessed land and we should do our best to be good citizens--by voting in every election (big or small) and by getting involved in trying to affect positive changes in the community.
14.  Beauty comes from within.
15.  You need to vary the hiding places of goodies and gifts frequently. 
16.  Embarrassing topics should be avoided at all costs, but if one has to refer to it, then code names make it less embarrassing. (For instance, saying you need a new "arb" is much less blush worthy than saying you need a new bra.)
17.  It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice. 
18.  We are blessed to live in a day and time when there is a living prophet on the earth. 
19.  Why pay full price for something, when you can just skip buying it altogether?   
20. Slow down.  Take time to smell the coffee....er, I mean roses. 

...And the list could have gone on and on.  Thank you mom!!!  I love you!

                                          Our mothers on our wedding day-- Denver, Colorado Temple---December 1993

   from left:  My Nana Crain, Glen's Grandmother Loughton, Glen's mother Sandy, My Mom, My Grandma Hepworth             (The only missing grandmother that day was Glen's Grandma Goold)

 

I also want to express my heartfelt gratitude and love to Glen's mother,  Sandy, who is as kind, generous, accepting, and loving a mother-in-law as anyone could ever wish for! 

Happy Mother's Day!

"...I did remember the words which they said unto me that their mothers had taught them."  Alma 57:21

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"Motherhood is the greatest potential influence either for good or ill in human life. The mothers image is the first that stamps itself on the unwritten page of the young child's mind. It is her caress that first awakens a sense of security, her kiss, the first realization of affection, her sympathy and tenderness, the first assurance that there is love in the world."

                                                                                                                                                             ~David O McKay