My Mother, My World

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Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom’s 62nd birthday.

Today is a day for celebrating a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend, and a grandmother.

Today is a day for celebrating how special my mom is to me and my daughter.

While today is my mom’s birthday and it is typical to buy a gift, I want to celebrate the gifts my mom gave me.  The gifts that I hope to give to my daughter.  The gifts that inspire me to be the mom I am today.

She made our house a home.

Our home always felt safe, full of love and full of joy.  Whether it was eating a pancake breakfast on Sunday mornings, celebrating our birthdays with a big family dinner, or sitting on the deck on a summer evening, my mom made sure our hearts were filled with love and happiness.

From Halloween to Easter, my mom decorated our home for the holidays.  My favorite was when she spelled out “Happy Halloween” or “Happy Easter” with our wooden blocks.  No matter what the holiday, I looked forward to seeing the figurines and special touches throughout the house.

Now that I am a mom, I appreciate the things my mom did to make our house feel like a home.  I love decorating for the seasons and holidays.  I love to reveal the decorations and set up little displays throughout our house.  As my daughter gets older, I know she will appreciate these special touches just as much as I did as a child.

I love making breakfast on the weekends because it reminds me of Sunday morning pancakes, french toast, bacon and sausage as a child.  I also love hosting a family dinner for my husband’s birthday and my daughter’s birthday.  It brings me such joy to have our family in our home, creating memories, laughing, telling stories and just simply enjoying each other’s company.  My mom hosted birthday dinners, Thanksgiving dinners and Christmas dinners and now I get to follow in her footsteps and bring these special occasions into my own home.  Our house will always be filled with love, happiness, and laughter.

She encouraged us to “Do Our Best” and “Work Hard”.

My mom worked hard to make sure all of our needs were met.  We always had healthy food to eat, clean clothes to wear, books to read, games to play, and the supplies we needed to be successful in school.  My mom always put my brother and my needs before her own.

When we were in school, she always told us to do our best.  It was okay if we fell short of 100% on that test as long as we did our best.  My mom would study our spelling words with us, help us with a science project, or keep us focused on finishing a writing assignment.  I remember dragging my feet on many projects and writing assignments for school.  But my mom kept me moving forward no matter how much I wanted to quit.

My mom was very involved in our education.  She volunteered in the library and in our classroom.  She attended every chorus concert, band concert, and special event.  She came to Field Day and cheered us on even though Field Day was not my favorite day of the school year.  I even remember when she helped my brother and I make posters for a school election.  She was a band parent when I joined the high school color guard.

I am an encouraging person.  When I was teaching, I encouraged my students to do their best.  I encouraged them to keep going even though a book or assignment was difficult for them.

Now that I am a mom, I find myself encouraging my daughter to explore her toys and notice the sights that surround her.  I cheered her on and made a big deal when she started rolling over, crawling and now walking.  I encourage my daughter to keep trying to put that shape in the slot when it might be hard.  Then, I make a big deal about her accomplishment.  Seeing her big smile and watching her clap for herself makes my heart happy.

She spent time with us.

My mom always spent time with us.  We rode our bikes together.  We visited the library and checked out new books to read.  We played at the park.  We played board games together.  We baked sugar and chocolate chip cookies together.  No matter what it was, my mom always made my brother and me a priority.  She wrote us notes every single day in our lunch boxes.

Spending time with my daughter is a priority of mine.  That is one of the reasons I chose to be home with her.  I wanted to be the #1 in her life and I wanted to be the one to plan fun activities each day for her.  I wanted to be the one to schedule play dates, visits to the library, and playtime at the park.  I wanted to be the center of her world, just as my mom was the center of my world.

Happy birthday mom!  Here’s to all of the memories you’ve created so far and all the wonderful ones you continue to create.  Although it is your birthday, i am the one who has received the greatest gift.  Thank you for working hard for your children, creating a safe home full of love and laughter, spending time with us and always encouraging us to do our best and keep going when the going got tough.  Thank you for preparing and teaching me how to be a mom to my beautiful girl.  I love you!

About the Author

Gwendolyn Reinhard — Nurturing Family and Self

www.nurturingfamilyandself.com

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Gwendolyn is an elementary ESL teacher of 9 ½ years turned stay at home mom.  As a mother to a 15 month old daughter, wife to a wonderful and supportive husband, and marathon runner, she wants to inspire moms to live a balanced life filled with passion, love and laughter.