Mom's Paycheck & Growing Pains

I must be a sentimental fool or just hormonal because lots of silly things are pulling at my tender little heart strings.

And....here's the proof...

I had an oh-my-goodness-I'm-really-a-mom moment. 

One of Twodles beloved stuffed animals has been slowly ripping at the seams and hemorrhaging cotton fluff and little plastic bean-like pellets.  I'm sure I don't even have to say that Twodles calls the fluff and pellets a lay-bug, that's a given right?  I let the poor monkey go for as long as a lazy mom I possibly could.  It wasn't until Twodles was really freaking out that monkey was losing his innards that I decided to do something about it.  Twodles really wanted to take him to nap, but I told him I needed to fix him and it would be as good as new as soon as he was up.

As I sat hand-sewing the seams back together, the feeling struck me like a ton of bricks "I am a mom, this is what it's all about!"  I felt a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment.  I mean, come on it was such a silly little thing, but it seemed to be a sweet reassurance from a loving God that, indeed this was my calling in life and that I was doing OK.  My paycheck for all my efforts, if you will.

As good as new

I was so excited for Twodles to wake up and show him my excellent repair job.  When he finally did, he was almost vibrating he was so happy, and I may or may not have gotten a little teary eyed.  Not really because he was so happy, but more because he was counting on me and I did something that he needed.  It was important to him, therefore it was important to me.  

Then there were a few oh-my-goodness-my-son-is-all-grown-up moments.

You know its time for haircuts when it takes more than a minute for Mr Medic to do his hair.  I knew it was coming too.  Twodles has even been mentioning that he needed one himself.  So we spent the morning giving cuts.  Twodles doesn't normally do too well with the whole hair cutting process, even if we try to bribe him with a sucker.  Because of this delimma, and my and Mr Medics obvious lack of communication, Twodles usually ends up with a buzzed head.  YUCK!  

This time though, he did pretty darn good.  He held still and I was able to give him his first ever tapered decent looking haircut with some length on top to style.  Not only did I feel pretty proud of my handy work (I only cut the back of Mr Medics hair and he does the rest, so this was my first full head cut) but it made my little boy look so grown up.  

Isn't he handsome?

Look at that!  Short on the sides and longer on top...go me!

He likes his haircut just as much as I do, especially since he got a jellybean.

Later that same night we got a little note on our door about the church Primary Program coming up.  Although I have planned and prepared a program myself, this will be a first for Twodles.  So I hurry and flip the paper and what do my eyes behold?  A SPEAKING PART!  I couldn't even finish reading it without leaking from my eye orifices.

We've been prepping him already, telling him that he will get to go up to the stand during sacrament and talk into the microphone.  And since we've had a few sick days and are home from church we are practicing his part

"Heavenly Father loves me, and I love him, and church, and priesthood, and prophet"

I think he was giving his first official testimony here!

This is his actual line 

Growing up hurts so good!  I'm so proud of my big boy and all he is learning.

What are some of your HAPPY mom moments that completely compensated for all the hard, unpleasant ones?

What methods do you use to teach your children concepts or how do you help them memorize things?