Moms that Make it Happen: Annie Claire L. Bass

I've celebrated Mother's Day as a mother for four years now (whoa!). So far, each year the weekend has been filled with baseball games and family. When your husband is the head baseball coach of a successful 5A team, usually this is playoff time and the pressure is on to win games. It's actually a really exciting time for my family and I wouldn't have it any other way, especially now that my girls can run around and have fun at the ballpark.  

This year in particular, we had Aubree's dance recital on the same night as the second game of a three game series.  If the Catholic High School Bears won that second game, they didn't have to play a third game. But if they lost any one of those games, Daddy would have to miss Aubree's first dance recital.  Not only was it her FIRST, she also had a Daddy-daughter dance that Daddy just couldn't miss. Needless to say, there was some extra motivation to win the first two games this round. The Bears did it, in case you were wondering, and he made it on time!

As tiring as it can be to chase Gracie boo around the stands, I cherish this cute age and her adorable laugh. Aubree is starting to be as independent as she can be (not sure where she gets that from) and is becoming smarter by the day. I'm amazed at the things she tells me sometimes. 

More often than not, I feel overwhelmed with the amount of "work" I have on my plate and feel as though I'm missing out on some of my children's moments. It's hard to think you can do it all while being fully present wherever that "all" takes you. Time is passing before my eyes and right now, I have to consciously decide when I need to stop and just soak it all in.

If my house is an absolute disaster, oh well.
If there are mounds of clothes to fold, oh well.
Those things can wait.  My girls need my attention and that is what I need to worry about when I'm home with them. And when I'm working on trying to "do it all," I remind myself of what is most important to me and try to focus on that. My girls and my husband Brad are at the top of that list. 

In honor of Mother's Day, I would like to thank my own mother for raising me to be the giving, caring, go-getter I am today and for taking my girls when she can to give me a break. Thanks to my mother-in-law for always helping out when we need and for showing my girls how to have fun. Can't forget about my sweet grandmothers and grandmother-in-law. They are the backbone of our families and we all wouldn't be here without them!

So, today I salute all of the mothers out there!  Cheers to us for "doing it all." Even when we think we aren't we are. 

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