I am a Mom Part 2

There are a million stories about my daughter spanning her whole life. My husband and I can sit and giggle about them for hours – like the time the dog ran her down, or when she was the first pink shepherd in the church Christmas Pageant, or when she rode the “big kid rides” at the fair for the first time. Or, all of the kid-isms that have crept into our vocabulary like, “you wanna come play wiff me in my bebroom?” or “I was fastht asthleep!” or “Oh! Da Wewlcum!”

My daughter and I have had a lot of adventures together over the years. Nine times out of ten, if the family is apart, she is with me. We have driven back and forth across the US together, toured London together, rode out a couple of hurricanes together. For her I have found courage in myself to do things I wouldn’t ordinarily do. I went swimming in the Atlantic Ocean because she wanted to go (I am afraid of the water); I braved crowds to get her to the front of the stage at a concert (I don’t care for crowds).

For most of her life, she was undersized, a kidney problem kept her weight down. She was 36 pounds at 6 years old. A year of intensive treatment brought relief and growth! My daughter is bigger than I am now (the other day she handed ME down a skirt she had outgrown!) When she smiles I see my husband and when she laughs, I hear him. She is funny, has a dry, sarcastic wit and is a good conversationalist. We talk all of the time. My daughter is bright; she is a year ahead in school and always on the honor roll. She is lyrical. Music is in her soul. She plays the trumpet, and when she practices is quite good. She wants to learn to play her father’s guitar. My daughter wants to be an actress and enjoys drama club immensely.

As I am adopted, my daughter is my only blood relative.

I had a wonderful Mother’s Day. My husband called yesterday, so he would be sure to make it. It was a wonderful call. After church today, we went to lunch together, nothing special, she had chicken and I had shrimp; she gave me a rosary she had made herself. It is beautiful – by far the nicest I own. Then, we went shopping. She needed new jeans and bras. What a perfect thing to do on Mother’s Day. Until now, I had purchased her bras for her. Today, I taught her all about them, the different styles, materials, and fits. She tried them on, picked some out. No one told me these things as a young girl. No one helped me through any of the “women’s issues.” I felt so connected to her, so like I imagine a mom should.

She is growing up fast. In a few years she’ll be leaving for college, and my nest will be empty – just when it seems that I am getting the hang of it.

I seem to have lost my focus. I had wanted to tell you all about my daughter and Mother’s Day, but I seem to have rambled all over the place. Oh well, so long as FOD is working, I can always try again.

Happy Mother’s Day!