Happy Birthday Mom

My parents don't read my journal, they don't have the address and that is ultimately how I want it, but I still want to celebrate my mom. Today is her birthday. She is 50 today. She had me when she was 20. I called her tonight when we got home from a Welcome Home Celebration for our soldiers and the 2 other units who were deployed at the same time (they all left about a week to a few days from each other). The celebration was great! (More about that later).

Mom took the day off of work and went shopping with her best friend! She was thrilled that I called her and the boys talked to her!

My mom and I have a much  better relationship when there's an ocean between us. I love her, but well as it happens she drives me crazy at times. I'm not perfect and don't help at times.

Growing up my dad worked different hours. When I was a toddler until I was 5, his job would at times take him away from us for weeks at a time. Nothing like the deployments us military face, but it was still more of a single parent home at times. Throughout most of Junior High/Middle School my dad worked 2nd shift, for those who don't know those hours it's 3 pm to 11 pm. He worked about 30-45 minutes away from our house so he wouldn't get home until after midnight, he'd normally eat a little something, watch tv to wind down, and be in bed by 1 am. My brother and I only saw him on the weekends during the school year. My mom pretty well did it all. She loved/s us, and I know we were not always easy. I can remember every morning before she left for work, she'd leave my dad a note and it always started off one of two ways either his name or "Babe". If an issue happened with my brother and I and the discipline was something she felt he needed to be involved in, it was there in ink (my brother and I knew we were in deep trouble!).

Mom came to nearly every single sporting event I was in, unless it was during the middle of the week and was just too far away for her to get to by the time she got off work. She came to every vocal music event and band. She came to football games to watch me perform, even though she's NOT a football or any sports fan. She did it because she loved me, and that's what a mom does.

She grew up without knowing what a mother's love is like. Her mother died when my mom was only 2 yrs old (her brother was 1). My grandpa remarried with in a year, mostly out of fear of raising two small children alone, feeling they needed a mother.Sadly Grandpa didn't find a good woman. He found a witch. (She died when I was in 2nd grade). My Grandpa is a wonderful man though. He made sure my mom and her brother had a close relationship with their mom's family, so my mom spent her summers and many holidays and weekends, etc at her grandparents and aunts and uncles.

Her step-mom once told my mom that "If God wanted me to have a daughter he would have given me one". She was too stupid to realize GOD did give her a daughter. My mom was the only girl. Her step mother came into the marriage with 4 sons and then Grandpa and her had another son together. Mom always knew my grandpa loved her, but never felt the love of a mother.  I can't imagine that pain. She loved her step mom, but wasn't loved in returned.

She married my dad (high school sweetheart) at the age of 18. I know without a doubt he's the love of her life and vice versa. She's about to retire from over 20 years of working for Wal-Mart. She and my dad live in their dream home. She will soon get to enjoy gardening (flowers) not just in the evenings, she can work on her fish ponds, sewing, and embroidary anytime she wants. She retires on my Jacob's birthday!!

I love my mom. I'm sure she sacrificed a great deal for my brother and I. Although we don't have a perfect relationship, I love her and I'm thankful for her.

 

Happy Birthday Mom, I love you.