Thursday, February 21, 2013

Unexpected Honor


Well, here I am sharing something I never, ever thought I'd be writing about! And getting more personal than I usually do on the blog. But I couldn't find any way around it, if I wanted to say thank-you and spotlight a great organization. And I do, so here goes!

I was honored by American Mothers as Arizona Young Mother of the Year for 2013! To be honest, I didn't know mothers were still awarded with this honor- wasn't it the stuff of legends or myths? Much to my surprise this organization does still exist and they do a wonderful thing: Honor Mothers! 

I love this explanation of what they do, 

"We have never intended to say that our honored women are perfect, or that they are the best mothers in the state. But we hold them up as an example of mothers who find great joy in what they do. By honoring their accomplishments, and asking them to be our spokespersons, they can be a positive voice in a world that is increasingly dismissing the roles of mothers and fathers and functioning families." Janeen Wright

I do find joy in what I do as a mother. That is mostly because of the example of this great woman - my mom. She is the mother of seven children and you should see the way her face lights up when one of them walk into the room. She has taught me so much about enjoying every stage of life - of my children and my own life, too!

I'm so glad she and my dad were able to be there that night!

My Beautiful Mother
 These are two more women that were honored (there were more, but I didn't get all their pictures.) Mari received Mother of Accomplishment and Judy received Mother of the Year. Did I mention how humbling this was for me to rub shoulders with these wonderful mothers?
From Left: Mari Goodman, Judy Ward, Me
 Here I am feeling very thankful and also, if you look close (ok, please don't) you'll detect some relief. I had just finished the short speech I had been invited to give! Yikes! What could I say about mothering to a room full of fantastic moms? 
Humbled & Happy
 And a word about the man I love. He is a great father and his example teaches me so much. I have been blessed to always have his support. I can say this: he is a man that "gets it" when it comes to understanding how hard it is to be a mom.  
Steve, or  The Love of My Life in case it wasn't obvious!

And finally, for anyone still reading - is the quote I shared in my speech:

"The soul is healed by being with children."  ~Fyodor Dostoyevsky




8 comments:

Amy said...

Wow! Congrats Tamara!! You truly are amazing!

Valerie Ipson said...

So glad I got to be there and hear your speech and applaud you!!! I'm always secretly applauding you because you're amazing!!!

Susan said...

Congratulations, Tamara! What a nice honor and what a great tribute to your own mother.

Cherene said...

Congratulations, Tamara!! You are such an amazing wife, mother, and friend. I know you are such a humble person that it probably wasn't easy for you to share this wonderful recognition with your readers, but I'm so glad you did! I love you, girl, and truly feel so blessed to count you as one of my dearest friends!

Cherene said...

Congratulations, Tamara!! You are such an amazing wife, mother, and friend. I know you are such a humble person that it probably wasn't easy for you to share this wonderful recognition with your readers, but I'm so glad you did! I love you, girl, and truly feel so blessed to count you as one of my dearest friends!

Unknown said...

Congratulations Tamara! What an inspiration you are to me and so many others! Wish I was closer....thanks for sharing the great and exciting news!

Unknown said...

I am catching up on my blog reading, now that conference is over. Can I just say that no one deserves this more than you? Not only are you a hard-working,kiddo-loving mom, but you are a shining example of finding joy in the journey now. And for those of us that tend to bow under the weight of our respective crosses, it is a breath of fresh air every time we are with you. You lift others up, and that is amazing!

Tamara said...

Thank you for the comments! The one problem with blogs - I can't reach out and give you all hugs!!

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