i love being a woman : dianne, my sweet mom {organist, pianist, gardener, quilter, writer, as a little girl, prayed every night to become a faerie}

so this will be the most difficult introduction yet...
how do i succinctly say everything there is to know about my mom?!
first of all,
you must know that she has a wonderful sense of humor
and loves to laugh with her family. she often laughs herself to tears.
she is a believer...of everything and everyone.
she can play anything on the piano or organ that you hand her...
you should have been at her organ recital when she blew everyone
away with bach's toccata and fugue in d minor
{of course my mom plays the organ...the most wonderful and powerful instrument there is}.
my mother is wise beyond anyone i've ever met...
she knows what this world is all about--what can be seen and what can't be seen.
she is quick to learn, and humbly admits when she is wrong.
her fierce love of her kids is remarkable...considering what we've put her through.
she's known as "mama" to all of our childhood and neighborhood friends.
if you ever meet her, you'll easily fall into conversation with her
and feel you can do anything. she just has a magic touch.
i am always in awe of her natural beauty.
she's never been one to wear makeup.
and her hair is the most wonderful silver...been that way
since i can remember.
if i'm lucky i'll go gray early like she did.

i want to go on and on...but we should get to her list.
it says so much about her.

The reasons I love being a woman have to do with what I saw and heard
from my mother and grandmother...

1. I love being a daughter to a mother and grandmother who knew how to comfort and aid the women in their community.

2. I loved learning of how women helped each other by listening to
the stories of my grandmother helping her neighbors deliver their babies,
relieving the suffering of their sicknesses.

3. I love knowing that during WWII, the women in my family organized themselves
to take care of the home while their husbands went to war.
My Grandmother was Relief Society president so every morning the bishop would call her
with a list of women that needed help. She would spend the day helping them.
My aunt had a job and helped bring in some money.
My mother had a baby and so she stayed home and took care of the home.

4. I loved singing lullabyes to my babies.

5. I loved sitting on the bed of the youngest child,
with all my children gathered around and reading stories to them.
This always led to conversations about what worried them or
what funny things happened to them.

6. I love being able to help my aging mother by combing her hair,
giving her a bath, all the while laughing about what is not fun about aging.

7. I loved having my children bring me potato bugs, dandelions,
blossoms off the trees for evidence of their love to me.

8. I loved working with other women sewing children's pajamas,
embroidering pillow cases, dish towels for service projects.

9. I loved creating to beautify life such as quilting, crocheting;
thinking of having a warm comforter to comfort.

10. I love that I can still nurture and watch flowers and vegetables grow after all
you children have grown up and you aren't as needy as you once were.
There are always places to be and things and people to nurture and care for.

thank you, mom, for such a beautiful list!
don't you want to visit her and
quilt with her for an afternoon?
if you ask her, she'll play her organ for you.

{color photos by my brother, dan}

to read more about my mom click here.