Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers, stepmothers, grandmothers, aunts who fill in as mothers, etc! You rock my socks!

I was very lucky to grow up surrounded by very strong and amazing women, so I'd like to take a second to thank them and wish them all a happy mother's day.

To my mom. You and I haven't always gotten along. You weren't always the best mom, and I wasn't always the best daughter. We've had our struggles, and our ups and downs, but I've never doubted that you loved me. You had me very young, almost too young and in some ways, we had to grow up together. I love you and I appreciate all that you did for me. I am very proud of how hard you are working to get your life to where you want it to be. Love you Bumma.



To my Aunt Sue. I sometimes joke that when I write my memoirs, I'm going to call it "Dropped the Ball". It'll be about all the people in my life who dropped the ball in raising me. You will not be a part of that book. When there was no one else around to take care of me, you took me into your home. You made me your daughter and a part of your family when you were thousands of miles away and could have just let someone else handle it. You've always been there for me and have been a great shoulder to cry on. I love you Auntie Sue Sue.

To my Grammy. From the day we met when I was three years old, you've never made me feel like just your step-granddaughter. You've always made me feel like I was a true part of your family. You gave me my faith and probably single-handedly had the most influence on my resilience and strength. You've always been a pillar in our family, in our church, and in my life. You've never been afraid to tell me when I'm making a mistake or doing something stupid, but you've never made me feel judged. I love how much I've come to understand and appreciate you so much more now that I am older. I love you Grammy.

To my Nana. How you've managed to survive all these years in our family with those children of yours, I don't even know. Eight kids. Eight!? Thank you for letting me live with you in high school when I had nowhere else to go. Thanks for scraping together money so I could have a class ring. Thank you for being nicer to me growing up than you were to your own kids. I hear you were a terror. Even when I didn't see you for many years, I never forgot how good you smelled and your blue checked housecoat with the white mother of pearl buttons. Thank you for taking care of me when I was really sick and thought that I was going to lose my mind. I hope you stick around forever. I love you Nanabanana.

To my mother-in-law Lisa. You are seriously the best mother-in-law anyone could ask for. The way you love your children inspires me everyday. We may not agree on some things, but we both know that everything we do comes from a place of love. Thank you for raising my husband into the amazing man he is today and thank you for being the best Nana CJ could ever hope for. Thank you for welcoming me into your family with open arms and never making me feel like an outsider. Thank you for always being there to help out. I hope you know how much I appreciate all that you do for CJ and for us. 

And there are two men I'd love to thank on this mother's day.

To my husband. I love you so much. Thank you for trusting me to carry and raise your son. Thank you for letting me stay home with him for the last 2 years. Thank you for making me a mother. Thank you for all of your hard work. I appreciate everything you do for our family. I hope that we have many more children together, but even if we don't, our family will be wonderful.

To my son, CJ. You have brought so much joy to my life. Thank you for putting a smile on my face everyday. I love everything about you, even when you are in the middle of a temper tantrum. I love that as you fall asleep, you wrap your arms around me and sigh "mama" like that is the happiest place in the world. I love that in the morning when I go in your room, you light up and yell "mama" when you see me. Though your labor was terrible, I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. I love you stinkypoo.


Happy Mother's Day everyone! Pin It