Three Moms

As I think about my mom on Mother's Day, I can't help but smile. Aside from my husband, she is my most trusted friend and supporter. As with any relationship, we have our ups and downs. But watch us pigging out on junk food or catching up on the phone, and there will be no doubt.... we are like two peas in a pod. I am my mother's daughter. :)
 

Even now, at 65 years "young", she continues to amaze me with her strength of character, perseverance, many talents and her sense of humor. I admire and respect so many things about her and can only hope to love as unconditionally and as sacrificially as she does.

I could write an entire book on why I think my mom is so wonderful but you'll just have to take my word for it - she is an amazing woman (grandmother and mother-in-law too!) and I thank God for the privilege of being her daughter.

I love you mom!

Disneyland

On this Mother's Day I am also thinking of another mother - one whom I've never met, one whom I will most likely never cross paths with, but one who has given me one of the greatest gifts I have ever received. I'm filled with mixed emotions as I remember Bethany's birth mom and the sacrifices she made in order to do what she thought was best for her child. Whereever she is right now, I hope she knows without a doubt how truly grateful and happy I am to be Bethany's mother.

Thank you.

And to my two precious kiddos, you make me feel like the luckiest mom in the world.

I love you both so much!

s

And a big thank you to Austin (i know you'll read this) for a very special Mother's Day gift. 

Austin sawed, sanded and decorated this piece of wood. He used an old-fashioned hand drill to drill two holes for the impressive flower pens which he also made. Kudos to his teacher who supervised the making of 24 of these.

Daddy's Girl

It is very common for an adopted child to initially bond to one parent over another. In Bethany's case, I was the parent she immediately attached to from the very first moment we met. Daddy has been a work in progress but Bethany has made great strides with him in the almost three months she has been home. She now smiles when he comes home from work, usually goes to him when he holds out his arms, plays with him, and lets him feed and bathe her (notice i used the words "let him").

Recently, Sam went on a three day golf trip with his buddies. He called quite frequently to check on us and ask how the kids were doing (so weird and wonderful that i can now use "kids" in plural form!). He'd ask about Austin and I'd share how Austin misses their nightly roughhousing sessions. Then Sam would ask about Bethany, "Does she notice I'm gone? Is she acting any different without me?" I told him that she was doing fine and that it didn't seem like she noticed he was gone.... :(

That is, until the one afternoon Sam called and I put him on speaker phone. As soon as Bethany heard his voice, she reached for the phone and started to cry. Now mind you, Bethany is not one to shed tears easily or for just any reason. Plus, I've talked on speaker many times before and she never once reacted like this. I gave her the phone and her cries immediately turned into giggles. I took the phone away to see what would happen and in an instant the tears streamed down her face. Normally, I would have run for my camera but it just seemed cruel to go into paparazzi mode when she was so upset. Sometimes you just have to say no to the camera! :)

As sad as I was for Bethany, I was so happy that she missed her Daddy! I just kept repeating, "She likes you! She really likes you!". I'm sure Sam was just as happy and I could picture him on the other end grinning from ear to ear. :)

When Sam finally returned home, Austin barely took his eyes off the t.v. long enough to say hello (i made him turn the t.v. off to give a proper welcome). Instead, it was Bethany whose eyes lit up and crawled straight towards him. She buried her face on his shoulders, smiled and cuddled with him. It was the sweetest thing to see and I was almost in tears.

It looks like Bethany is well on her way to becoming Daddy's little girl.