Happy Mother's Day!

I would like to take a moment to tell you about the most incredible woman I know. 



Isnt she beautiful? All 5' of her!



My mother is amazing.  She has always been (and always will be) Super Woman to me.  From childhood, she worked 40 hours a week yet still made it home in time to rush around and get dinner on the table before my father got home every night of the week. She did this day-in and day-out with no complaints.

My mother tucked me into bed every night around 9:00 with a kiss and an “I love you.”  She did this until I moved out at 17, and she still does this when I visit her.    

My mother would do special things for my brother and I all the time while growing up.  Some of the fondest memories I have are the green milk on St. Patrick’s Day because “the leprechaun peed in it!” and the Saturday mornings she’d let us stay in our pajamas and watch Saturday morning cartoons most of the day.  We had to change out of our pajamas about 30 minutes before dad got home from work.

My mother has the biggest heart of anyone I know.  She sponsors kids at Christmas-time to ensure they have gifts under their tree, she volunteers, hosts parties, gives unselfishly and loves abundantly.  My mother is one of those people who buys something for someone and asks that it be given to them anonymously.  She is really big on “surprises.”

My mother taught us how important family is!  She was at every soccer, baseball and softball game my brother and I had.  She was at every piano practice and recital and a good amount of dirt-bike races my brother had when he first started racing.  She has the most unusual (shrilling) scream ever.  I could tell her scream out of all the other parents in the crowd. 

My mother gives some of the best surprises ever! She took my brother skydiving on his 18^th birthday.  For her wedding to her husband, they flew us all out to Antigua to witness their wedding as a family.  She is so fun to be around and is always laughing and having a good time.  When we are together, my mom and I tend to laugh so hard that we cannot catch our breath and she eventually starts snorting…which naturally makes the laughter continue for minutes at a time and the giggles to last another 20 minutes. 

Funny Story:  We were in the kitchen once and for some reason, she put her hands between her legs.  I asked if I could pull on them (trying to flip her over.)  When I did this, I didn’t get enough air and she fell flat on her forehead.  I still remember the thump her head made on the linoleum floor and how hard we laughed afterwards.  I still chuckle every time I think about it.

My mother was the rock in our family when I was extremely ill in 2009.  She helped Todd and my father understand what was going on while I was in ICU in a medically induced coma.  She was the one to show everyone how to “scrub in” to see me.  She was the one who read to me even though the doctors said I couldn’t hear her.  She drove 4 ½ hours each way to come see me more than 3 times as my status would improve or decline.  She stayed with me until I was lucid and on the mend, unselfishly driving back up to visit me in the hospital at the end of my stay just to spend the day with me.

I love that even though I am 30 years of age, my mother still calls me her “baby girl.”  When we are together and with our husbands, we are constantly reminded that we are “two peas in a pod” with so many similarities and silly quarks.

My mother is and always has been my biggest supporter and best friend.  I am truly blessed to have such a loving, strong, independent woman in my life.

Mom, I know you are reading this, and I want you to know how much I love you and how special you are to me.  I love you biggie bunches.