Amy (age 23) still calls me Mommy. I thinks it's sweet. To Jud (age 20) I've been Mom for quite some time. They are both titles I'm very proud of. My kids are my bestest accomplishment.
Sometimes I talk like parenting is/was a big chore. But the days our children were born were the most amazing joyful days in my life! You kinda get to know each child while they're in the womb, but giving birth is like opening a present (all except for the bloody painful part). Who is in there? Such promise - so many stories to be written.
These days I'm not around little kids much - except in stores and restaurants when they seem to be screaming and shrieking. I forget how cute they can be. Babies are kinda scary. They're so needy and vulnerable. I didn't babysit and wasn't around babies much until I had my own. I did a lot of reading about what to do when. It was a lot of work. But oh, when they smiled that first smile - clouds parted, exhaustion lifted.
As they hit toddlerhood, the funny/cute things they said overcame the bratty tough times. Such energy - it was hard to keep up with! I recall parking Amy in front of the TV during multiple viewings of the Elephant Show just so I could rest. For Jud it was GI Joe and Inspector Gadget. They played together really well - and had wonderful imaginations! I loved listening in on their antics - trying to escape the bageyes (bad guys).
When they were school age our lives were ruled by their activities - mostly sports, but we tried piano (fabulous recital), dance (Amy was a pickle, in a green leotard, reused as Halloween costume), Scouts (too much competition and testosterone going on) too. Jud played soccer shortly after tonsil surgery, a few days later he threw up blood and had to go bad under anesthesia to get them cauterized. Amy had a triple play as pitcher on her softball team.
The kids had a lot of friends over to play. And they had fabulous slumber parties with artistic birthday cakes. We put together wonderful imaginative Halloween costumes - something I'm really proud of since that type of stuff really isn't my thing. Having kids pushed me to do things I never would have otherwise, just because I loved them.
And yes, I've basked in the reflection of their glory. And laid awake nights when things didn't go so well for them. It's hard to let go and let them live their own lives, but yet they are. And I like my newly re found independence. But on this Mother's Day weekend, I miss my kids and having our family living together, being a part of each other's daily lives, good stuff and bad.
Sometimes I talk like parenting is/was a big chore. But the days our children were born were the most amazing joyful days in my life! You kinda get to know each child while they're in the womb, but giving birth is like opening a present (all except for the bloody painful part). Who is in there? Such promise - so many stories to be written.
These days I'm not around little kids much - except in stores and restaurants when they seem to be screaming and shrieking. I forget how cute they can be. Babies are kinda scary. They're so needy and vulnerable. I didn't babysit and wasn't around babies much until I had my own. I did a lot of reading about what to do when. It was a lot of work. But oh, when they smiled that first smile - clouds parted, exhaustion lifted.
As they hit toddlerhood, the funny/cute things they said overcame the bratty tough times. Such energy - it was hard to keep up with! I recall parking Amy in front of the TV during multiple viewings of the Elephant Show just so I could rest. For Jud it was GI Joe and Inspector Gadget. They played together really well - and had wonderful imaginations! I loved listening in on their antics - trying to escape the bageyes (bad guys).
When they were school age our lives were ruled by their activities - mostly sports, but we tried piano (fabulous recital), dance (Amy was a pickle, in a green leotard, reused as Halloween costume), Scouts (too much competition and testosterone going on) too. Jud played soccer shortly after tonsil surgery, a few days later he threw up blood and had to go bad under anesthesia to get them cauterized. Amy had a triple play as pitcher on her softball team.
The kids had a lot of friends over to play. And they had fabulous slumber parties with artistic birthday cakes. We put together wonderful imaginative Halloween costumes - something I'm really proud of since that type of stuff really isn't my thing. Having kids pushed me to do things I never would have otherwise, just because I loved them.
And yes, I've basked in the reflection of their glory. And laid awake nights when things didn't go so well for them. It's hard to let go and let them live their own lives, but yet they are. And I like my newly re found independence. But on this Mother's Day weekend, I miss my kids and having our family living together, being a part of each other's daily lives, good stuff and bad.
3 comments:
i miss having us together too :(
thanks for making me some bad-ass halloween costumes and ordering those yummy birthday cakes. no cake will ever measure up.
made me teary, leslie...Mr. Chuck Eilers was a science teacher when I started at CHS in the English dept. When I announced my prenancy, and shortly thereafter, my resignation, he awkwardly approached me in the teachers' lounge and advised, "Enjoy every moment with your kids little at home. The time flies." He believed those were the best times in life. When the kids wrote their names with deoderant on the back of my navy couch, I remembered his words. When Meg did some rebelling last year as a senior, (not much, but some) I remembered his words. When I sit at ballgames and grit my teeth at other parents' outward criticism of my kids or others on the field, I remember his words...this is good....I'm tired, but this is good tired...I, too, will be at a total loss when mine are all grown up. Peg
Nice to hear from you anonymous Peg. Paul and I just talked yesterday about the fact that we hadn't heard from you for a while. Happy Mom's Day!
Post a Comment