On December 19, 2014, two of my sons stood shoulder to shoulder, in front of a group of mourners at their grandfather’s funeral to eulogize him - just five months after standing together at their own Dad’s Service of Remembrance. Two sons that morning and the third son far away in Moosonee, waiting with his pregnant wife for their new baby to arrive. Zac, Ben and Pete - speaking and sharing on behalf of our family - doing something that young sons aught not to have to do so soon. Strong sons. Strong grandsons. Loving sons. Loving grandsons.

A long time ago - 44 years coming - Randy and I spent the Christmas season waiting for our first born to arrive. He arrived almost two weeks passed his due date on January 15th. It was a long labour and after almost thirty hours the doctor decided that a C-section would be performed. It wasn’t too much longer before I heard the cries of our firstborn son. Randy and I were young! Really children ourselves. We were excited and delighted. We were inexperienced and made our fair share of mistakes but Zac survived and thrived.

Not too many months later we discovered that baby #2 was on the way. We were on our way north to Red Lake to visit my brother, Tim and his family and we stopped at a road side truck stop on hwy 17 for coffee and treats. I changed Zac, now 8 months old and fed him - enjoying holding him during the long car ride north. Randy arrived back at the car with muffins and coffee - but they smelled like cigarettes smoke and I promptly opened the car door and threw up. All that vacation in the north I woke with the familiar signs of morning sickness and fatigue. Yup - I was pregnant. Our sweet Ben arrived early the next spring and we had two darling boys - not quite 15 months apart.

We were a busy, young family. Randy was the assistant pastor at our church and I was at home taking care of our two little men. Two in diapers. Two growing little bodies to love and feed and teach. Christmas time that year we were entertaining both sets of parents and I was super tired all the time. I wasn’t sure what was wrong. Turns out - nothing was wrong. Everything was very right! Baby #3 was on the way. Pete was born in August - 16 months after Ben. Three sons in just under three years.

People used to say the strangest things! “Wow! You really had your kids close together!” As if I didn’t know this. How about this one!!! “Too bad you didn’t get at least one girl!” Really????? Or this! “It’s a good thing you stopped at three!” That’s none of anyone else’s business - how many or how close - your children are. Randy and I were thrilled to have three sons and absolutely loved having them close together.

The boys were always together. When there was no one else around - there was always at least one brother home to play with. When we went camping - there was always someone to build that giant sandcastle with - play “steal” on the beach and volleyball in the water. Three kids playing on the same baseball team is always a win. The boys were a grade apart in school - sometimes two in the same class. Not a problem. They played hard together and yes - sometimes (even a lot of the time) fought hard with each other. They are brothers.

I am so thankful for the values and truths that Randy and I taught our sons - truths passed down from my parents and Randy’s parents. We taught our boys that their relationship with God is the most important relationship they’ll ever have. We taught them to respect their elders - grandparents, teachers, friends. We taught them how to put a worm on a line and then how to take a fish off the hook without hurting it. We prepared them for a relationship with their future wives - how to treat them - how to love them - how to live with them. We taught them how to be a fair and loving parent to possible children. We taught them to be honest at school and in their jobs - how to be a reliable employee. We taught them to be faithful in the small things. We taught them how to cheer for the Leafs and Blue Jays and Raptors. We showed them how to deal with disappointment. We taught them to be men.

This will be my 43rd mother’s day. Being a wife and mother is all I ever desired. My dreams and prayers were answered in such a big way.

We instilled the basics - God is God and what He says is truth. I didn’t care if the whole world disagreed - you either put your trust in God or man. I’ll always choose God. He made us and knows us and always holds us in His Hand. Good works begin in the home. Who you are at home is who you are. Train a child’s character by teaching them to do good to their siblings and parents. Selfishness brings misery. Demanding one’s own way, walking over their siblings, hurting others with your tongue or fists, ultimately brings misery - for the one being selfish and everyone else in the house. Faithfulness is huge. Actions speak louder than words. Words are cheap and meaningless if you don’t live it out. Be responsible. Take care of the tasks that are asked of you. If it’s not nice, don’t say it. Words should edify and build up, not break apart. Your words reveal your heart condition. “Out of the heart the mouth speaks.”Enjoy being at home. We played lots of games - went for hikes - went cycling - swimming - played outside as much as possible - read the classics together - enjoyed music - watched the Leafs and the Blue Jays! Grandparent time! Our boys spent 17 summers visiting my parents at the cottage - a week or two enjoying the hot summer days - canoeing - swimming - fishing - catching frogs - eating and sleeping. Likewise before Randy’s mom passed away - the boys each spent three or four days - solo - at their grandparents in Burlington - mini golfing - going to the movies - watching air shows - baseball games - eating and sleeping! The best of both worlds - the lake and the city.

These sons of mine are now husbands and dads. I’m super proud of them.

It went by so fast.