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Happy Mothers’s Day. My Mom is the best, of course. She’s British, from just outside London and has a bit of an accent still, so that’s extra cool.

Mom raised a family of seven children, six of them boys no less. She taught us so much about life and how to treat each other and how to approach the world. Not to minimize Dad’s efforts, he is awesome too, but he was at work a lot of the time and didn’t have to put up with a lot of our insanity and wild behavior. Mom was always there. She didn’t work a traditional job like a lot of mothers do these days because she wanted to have time for the family but what she did was more than a full time job. She helped with homework, church activities not just for the kids but for huge events with hundreds of people attending too. She cooked a real, healthy meal pretty much every day at the same time as caring for pretty much the whole neighboorhood too, whenever anyone was sick, or had a baby or a death in the family, she made extras to take around so whomever was having a hard time didn’t have to worry about feeding their family too.

All six boys are Eagle Scouts, and my sister Heather took awards in several activities and competitions for 4H. Mom hurt her back pretty badly assisting during the birth of a foal (that’s a baby horse to you and I) a number of years ago but it doesn’t really slow her down. She is visibly in pain sometimes but she doesn’t seem to let it change her desire to make sure everything gets done and done right, and to make sure that no one is ever left wanting. All through our time in school she either participated in or led the PTA type groups and helped out with all kinds of activities and outings. Sometimes it was a little tiresome to have your mom show up at school but she never embarassed me! Well, not too much anyway.

For the last 10 years or so she has been very active politically, serving on the Lindon city planning commity and eventually being elected to the City Council. I think she has now served 2 or 3 terms and is in the midst of her 4th, if I rememeber right. She isn’t always the most popular council member with her fellow representatives but you can tell they all respect (maybe even fear?) her because she sticks to her principles and doesn’t let people get away with shady deals and things that are not in the best, long term interest of the town.

Mom also spends a lot of time each week on Genealogy research for our own family and one full day a week at the Family History center in Salt Lake City teaching other people how to do research on their own. She also travels to England every few years to see family and do more hands-on research in parishes and graveyards there where our extended family and ancestors live(d).

Oh, and she still cooks dinner for the whole family every Sunday. With all the spouses and grandkids we’re now a group of over 15 most weeks. It’s pretty crazy but she keeps a handle on it all.

Here is a picture of her in 2004 holding my neice, Marissa. We were on a family camp for a couple days and this was on the way home. We stopped to take some pictures and walk around a nice little canyon area.

I love you Mom, you’re a great example to your family and to women everywhere.