Our Sunday Adventure & Other Mother’s Day Ramblings

To all of you lovely ladies out there that spend your time caring for and nurturing someone in your life, Happy {belated} Mother’s Day to you! I am elated at this crazy journey called motherhood and I am constantly amazed at the ever-changing emotions that accompany this huge, colossal responsibility and joy that so many of us experience.

I might get a little gushy on you today…

To sum it up: life as a mom is sweet. It’s an incomparable feeling that overcomes you as you watch with pride when the mini-me wobbles from the coffee table with full confidence, or perhaps when they reach up to you, eyes searching after a skinned knee or a scary siren, or maybe it’s the stolen kisses when you’re sure they’re not looking and they’re definitely not suspecting.

Life as a mom is sweet.

The little person that we are entrusted with is the greatest gift – and although I’m quite amazed at the uber fast development of their little person, sometimes I am completely caught off guard at the development that I’m going through as a parent to keep up.

Who knew a brain could become so saturated with mom-isms? Suddenly I’m awake in the middle of the night knowing that Liv’s little toes are cold and that socks are required pronto, or that there are 50 new, unconsidered dangers on that seemingly innocent playground, or that the best and most comforting way to fall asleep is with a well trained eyebrow rub that will soothe my tired baby at the end of a long day.

The funny thing is, I always knew that I wanted to be a mom and that I would love every minute of it. But I really wasn’t in any rush to join the mom gang. We waited several years after getting marriage to have a baby and even when we made that big decision (that’s one etch-a-sketch that can’t be undid – Juno, anyone?) the back of my mind still teamed with anxiety about pushing ‘everything’ aside to make room for anything else. Even with the eager anticipation of a new member of our family, I thought my entire world would change.

It did – but it didn’t. What I found on my journey is that reorganization might be required, but there is no pushing of who you are into any deep dark corners of the closet to be forgotten. Instead, that layer of mommy-hood is added to the unique makeup of who you are, and the depth of your being is now one padding thicker.

I feel immensely blessed that I can still work full time (my career and my goals in the business world were at the forefront of my nervous-nancy anxiety), and I feel whole having a job as I also nurture my little family (especially knowing that the latter always comes first). I have learned that in my unique way I can do both, and that the ‘corporate world drive’ that many young women feel is actually all about finding your niche – be it as the president of a company, an entrepreneur, a teacher, a full time mom.

What’s best about motherhood? What I most cherish is the everyday, crazy realization that I am loved by my daughter unconditionally, selflessly, devotingly. And I have come to realize that my greatest goal as a mom is to make sure that my entrusted little beings know that I feel the exact same way.

Becoming a mom is overwhelming, right? It can’t be just us new moms that feel those frequent waves of awesomeness – and I hope the surprise of it never gets old.

Ahhh there’s my gushiness – my heart on my sleeve.

Back to how we spent our Mother’s Day because I’d love to share a few pictures with you.

Oh what a beautiful day! My request this year was that we have a casual, lazy family day filled with little more than walking the grounds of some beautiful place (park, beach, downtown anywhere) with a vanilla latte and camera in hand. I wanted to picnic, play and wander for a good chunk of day.

What better place in San Diego than Balboa Park?

Kevin made a delicious little lunch that we enjoyed in a secret, empty nook of the giant park (which houses museums, fountains and flower beds galore) and then we played.

Liv is at that age where she’s curious, you can see it in those giant brown eyes of hers whether she’s learning how to smell a flower, what a butterfly painted on a wall is or how to scale extra large tree roots – before she turns to daddy and begs to be brought back down to the steady ground.

Oh boy is she ever curious!

If you’re wondering if she tipped right in alas she did not – but look at that cute bum! She was awfully darn close.

One of my favorite stops on the usual Balboa stroll includes the Botanical Gardens (+ that stunning Organ Pavilion — see top top pic of the outside theater).

Here’s the outside of the old metal arboretum, and a peek inside.

Enjoying the day as a family with little to-do list stress was such a treat!

I hope your Mother’s Day was equally special and that the little persons in your life (be they kids, grandkids, nieces or nephews, students or anything in between) appreciated you for the wonderful person that you are. Happy belated Mother’s Day :).