The most important moments of my life have always involved her. I'll never forget coming home from work in late 2007; two weeks before I married Adam. I pulled in the driveway to see my mom's car; she had taken the day off from work to come down and unpack all my shower gifts and find the perfect spot for them in our little house. Wedding planning, as most of you know, had been stressful, and my mom and I definitely had had our share of arguments over flowers, reception food, and everything else under the sun. I walked in the door and she was in the kitchen making turkey sandwiches and heating up soup for our lunch. I, of course, was thrilled that she was there, and for that lunch hour we spoke of nothing wedding. It was wonderful. For just an hour, it felt like I was in high school again: just me and my mom having lunch, shooting the breeze, and enjoying each others company. As I left to go back to work, I felt tears well up; I didn't want my mom to see so I rushed out the door. As soon as I got back to work, I sat down at my desk and lost it. Right there. In front of everybody. I don't know if it was the soup and sandwiches, the Christmas music that was playing, or the fact that all of my shower gifts were no longer littering my living room floor, but one thing I did know was that the love between a daughter and mother only grows with age; even as you're about to embark on a new journey with someone else.
After I had Aaron, and was overwhelmed with hormones and mommy-hood, my mom came down and brought over dinner for me and Adam. I was trying so hard to be brave; acting like this mommy thing was no sweat off my back...until my mom told me she was going back home. As I hugged her goodbye the tears welled up, and I lost it again. This time in front of her. I begged her not to leave me alone with this child; that I loved him, but I didn't know what to do with him, and I was scared. My mother pulled back and said, "Honey, I know this is hard, but you'll get used to it. This doesn't feel normal right now, but it will one day soon. I know you can handle it. That's why God chose you to be Aaron's mom." Well Mom, I now know why God chose you to be mine.
From teaching me how to make the perfect roasted potatoes (which I'm still trying to perfect), to showing me how to properly write a research paper, you have taught me a lot, Mom. You are the best mother, grandmother, sister, friend, teacher, etc. that I know, and I love you so incredibly much. Happy Birthday!! Here's to the next 50!!!!
Thank you Hayley, for such a lovely post! I'm doing the ugly cry right now. Love you to the moon!
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