The beauty of children...even in the toughest times

As a working mother, sometimes I get so caught up in “keeping my schedule,” I forget to just take time to enjoy all the people in my life. One of the most precious people that God has given me is my daughter. Despite the fact that she is only seven, she seems to have this sense of perception and wisdom that is far beyond her years. She has taught me so much more about life than I ever imagined I could learn on my own.

Recently, I was given a sobering reminder of how precious life truly is and what a gift it is to spend time with our loved ones. Experiencing loss is hard enough, but to have to help a child understand it can seem like an insurmountable task. The fear of her initial reaction almost paralyzed me and yet I found that it was almost exactly the opposite of what I’d expected.

I’d told myself that I had to find the strength to support her and help her work through her emotions. As I struggled to find the right words to say to explain the situation to her, she like always, seemed to already know. When I began to explain this tragedy to her, a little smile appeared on her face and she looked at me and her father and said, “He is with Jesus.” Her strength was a breathtaking reminder that God is always with us.

Even now, as I continue to try to make peace with the situation, she has helped me. When I am overcome with sadness, it is during those times that she reminds me of how much she loves me and how special I am to her. I know that I am staring in the face of God in the form of His little angel on Earth and she is reminding me of His everlasting love and mercy; even in the most difficult of times.

In the Midst of Winter...

Christmas and New Year's have come and gone and we are on our way in 2011. So far, we have been enjoying basketball. Carl is of course, coaching Kyah's team again. It's so wonderful to see him coach and do something special for his little team and to watch him and Kyah develop a relationship that is truly their own. The "Icebreakers" really are turning out to be a pretty good little team! We've only had a few games so far, but this week our practice and game schedule have been affected by a winter storm that has hit most of North Texas.

I personally think the ice and snow came with all this Super Bowl hoopla and hope it will leave with it too. I will say that if there is anything good about this weather, its that it has allowed us to spend some quality time together. But I am genuinely ready for Spring and Summer! Here are some photos of the last few months of this winter season...enjoy!

Christmas is in the Air

Well,its definitely feeling a lot like Christmas in the Branch household. This weekend has been filled with many reminders of what the season is truly about, Christ, family and friends. My husband and I took our daughter to see the Nutcracker Ballet and it was a nice performance, but I think it might be wise to wait at least another year or two before we try a two-hour ballet again with her.

Today, while we were together,my parents cooked us all the most wonderful "Christmas" dinner and I had a chance to laugh enjoy the afternoon with my siblings. It felt like we were kids again, except we have the great company of my husband and my brother-in-law and all of our kids!

It was so great to see my mom and dad enjoy all of us for the day. I am so fortunate to have such a great family and thank God for them. This holiday season has been filled with many blessings so far and I hope that there are many more to come.

This is an older photo of us...but none of us have really changed much.

Happy Holidays!

Ode to My Cathedral

I was recently sent a passage or as I would like to think of it, an infinitely wise word from GOD, by a coworker. While reading, I began to cry as I realized the special club that I joined almost seven years ago. "The Invisibles"...is a group that I am proud to say I am a part of...read on and you will understand.


Invisible Mother.....

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'

Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more! Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this??

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude -but now, they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone!?

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe . I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: 'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof, No one will ever see it. And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.'

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does.

No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become. At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.

I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for 3 hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, 'You're going to love it there.'

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

A Soccer Invasion

That's right the three bees have added soccer to the sports repertoire! Our sports journey has led us to the Metropolitan YMCA soccer program, where my daughter is playing and... get ready for this.... my husband is coaching! Yes, my husband who knows absolutely nothing about soccer is a coaching our daughter's team. This may seem like a bad idea, but in truth its been really good. He volunteered to do it out the kindness of his own heart. The five and six year old division was without a coach and for fear of letting all those wonderful kids down, he stepped up to the challenge and I, as his partner in all that we do, have signed on as team mom.

We've only had one practice and one game thus far, but its been interesting already! Although they didn't win, team "Sting" had a fabulous time and really that is all that matters! Our second practice and game were both canceled due to rain, but we are looking forward to coming out eager and strong next week. I have added a few photos from the first game...so I hope you enjoy! Stay tuned for more updates!

Life's moments...

As the weeks have turned into months, I have watched two of my co-workers blossom along what will become a sweet but sometimes painful journey that many of us know as motherhood. While I listen to their worry and excitement for all the new things to come; I am reminded of my own little one and the joy she brings me each day. You see, there is nothing else on Earth that can describe what it is like to be able to create and watch over another life, a life so close to your own you can almost feel their heart beat. Everyday you are filled with so much love,hope, nervous anxiousness, and awe...all at the same time. To be able to watch a piece of you grow little by little each day into a beautiful strong and little person is a gift that only GOD could provide.

When she was a little bit younger(she is only at the tender age of 6)... she'd always ask me to sing to her. I always had my favorite and I would not hesistate to oblige her, because to her it didn't matter that I didn't have the perfect pitch or that I may have messed up the words... to her it was beautiful. Some time has passed and she hadn't asked me to sing to her in a while, but last night as I lay her down almost half asleep already, she lay with her eyes closed and just as I kissed her and prepared to walk out, I heard a little voice request to hear "some people" as she calls Alicia Keys' song titled, "If I Aint Got You".



I turned and asked her why she'd chosen tonight to have me sing that song to her and she said to me in a half sleep/half awake voice, "Because you won't be here when I wake up in the morning,(my ER shift begins at 6am) and whenever I miss you the most I always remember 'some people'(a song I sang religiously to her as a baby and a toddler)." I choked back my tears and prepared myself to give her the best rendition I could muster up despite the lump in my throat and as I sang I saw her drift farther and farther into sleep with an angelic smile on her face, I knew that this was one of the moments I would remember for the rest of my life.

I have posted a few pics of my sweet girl...I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Hooray Friday!!

I always look forward to going to work everyday, because I can't wait to see what challenges or learning experiences await me, but, I have been so anxious to get through this week because of course, Mother's day is coming!!(Wow, that's a huge run on sentence!)I can't wait to see what my little toot has created for me this year. I am always so touched by how hard she works on her projects. She gets so excited and secretly, I do too. Whatever it is I know I will treasure it because it comes directly from her little heart. And what more could a mother ask for?