You will always be my friend, you know too much!

  

        While on vacation this year, I found the perfect gift for my two best girlfriends.   It was a magnet that in not so many words says what everyone who has a “best” friend knows. . . . that they will always be friends because they know the innermost thoughts and feelings of each other and are trusted to never reveal them unless asked to do so.

        And of course there are those moments of “What happens in (insert name of city or country here), stays in (insert same name)”.   We’ve all had them – you know the ones!   When you say or do something really stupid and you thank God everyday that only your best friends were there to witness it!

        Your secret will be safe with them!   So to all my girlfriends, remember that you will always be my friend, you know too much!   And besides that, I love you guys!

Life is a Roller Coaster

      When I look back on my life, it is amazing what a roller coaster ride it has been.   There have been so many ups and downs, but realistically there have been so many more ups than downs.   I have no complaints at all and I can honestly say that if I were to die today, I would be the luckiest person in the world.

       I have had experiences in life that as a child I would have never dreamed possible.  I’ve done things and seen places that others only dream of.    How many people can say that their life has been as full as mine?

       Let’s see……  I’ve been a bookkeeper, executive secretary, purchasing agent, truck driver, business owner, school bus driver, funeral home receptionist and secretary, a 911 operator, a wife, mother, Granny  and a mother-in-law.   I’ve had more life experiences and have more useless bits of information floating around in my head than any two people should have.  And yet, I wouldn’t trade a minute of it for anything.

         I have been places and seen things that I might never have had the opportunity to enjoy if my life had  gone in a different direction.   I’ve gotten to hang out with race car drivers and they actually know me – I mean how cool is that??  Especially as much as I love racing!      I’ve been on mission trips to some of the most beautiful places God has created and received the joy that working for others brings.   I have had people come into my life that brought me such joy and impacted my life in ways they will never know.   I’ve had the joy of watching my children grow to be adults and have families of their own.   I’ve travelled more in my lifetime than my parents, grandparents and great-grandparents did in all their lifetimes.

        How could I ever complain?  Don’t get me wrong, there have been some rough spots, but they just naturally come with life.    As Forrest Gump once said “Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’ll get!”.   So far, my life has been filled with my favorites -  strawberry, lemon and maple creams…… oh, and chocolate covered cherries!

This Journey Called Motherhood

              

1985 – Steve         and       1989 – Becca

      Motherhood is a strange journey for most of us.  We spend all of our youth playing house, caring for baby dolls and dreaming of getting married and having our own kids.

      Then the next thing you know, you’re married and all your dreams are coming true….. or at least you’d like to believe they are.   You realize you’re a little late and panic.   You somehow or another calm yourself down and decide that you might in fact like the idea of being a mother so you head to the doctor to find out if the rabbit will die or not.  It does and so you begin that life long journey called “Motherhood”. 

      In reality, you begin to look like a whale, your hormones are going crazy and you’ll cry about a stupid commercial for an hour.   God forbid that you should watch a good “chic” flick – you’ll have puffy eyes and a stuffy nose for months.   Your ankles swell to the size of basketballs, you can’t see your feet, you’re swaybacked from a much enlarged front side of your body and you waddle like a duck.  Other than that, pregnancy is a great thing. 

       And then after all the anxiety, mood swings, pain, joy, laughter, cursing and pushing comes the moment you’ve waited your whole life for …… the moment when you first look into that beautiful little face, hold them in your arms and know that it was all worth it.

        

   1985 – Steve                    1989 – Becca

      Being a mother means unconditional love sprinkled with discipline, guidance, patience, wonder, worry, pride, anger,  fear, happiness, sadness, expectancy, disappointment and many emotions yet to be felt.  

      The love that I have for all my children (including the one that I didn’t give birth to) will never change.  I can only envision it getting stronger as my life goes on.  I thank God each day for the joy of having them in my life.