Today has been a busy day of reflection; with a small dose of spring cleaning thrown into the mix. Tomorrow I will celebrate my 43rd Mother's Day. That fact is hard to wrap my mind around. Forty three years as a wife, mother and now a grandmother. All the memories, laughs and mistakes ramble around in my mind; I shake my head in amazement. We made it. We are all alive, happy and productive members of society. If someone had asked me how this adventure would turn out years ago, I would have probably smiled and said "Great...I hope!"When I think back to me as a young mother, I honestly have to laugh. There was never, ever a young woman more not prepared for motherhood than me. I knew nothing about babies. I was an only child. I married a young man, Tommy Carter, who was one of eleven children. Thank God!! He was number seven child, number five son and the love of my life. We were friends since grade school. In high school we flirted with the idea of love. Neither of us were ready for a lasting love or marriage, however all that changed in two years. He was a Marine, I was a college girl and when we got back together again, there was no stopping us. We married on December 26,1969. In June, we found out we were pregnant. Lisa was born Jan. 4, 1971. We were 2,000 miles away from home stationed in Yuma, Arizona. The base was located twelve miles from Mexico. We lived in an apartment four blocks from the California state line. It was a wonderful time to be young and in love.
What I didn't know in facts about parenting, I made up as I went along; with love, and a great sense of humor...and Tommy. He was my version of Dr. Spock. We laughed when the diapers fell off and tried again. We rocked our baby and told her stories. Tommy sang songs to her and to me; sweet songs he made up as he tinkered around with his guitar; and crazy jingles that made us laugh. There were also times when Lisa and I cried together while I tried to fix what was wrong. During those times I learned about teething, colic, earaches, tummy aches, air bubbles, constipation and the flip side...diarrhea.
Five years later, we were blessed with another daughter Tami. That time we were living in Tennessee. She was as precious and special as Lisa and we all loved her dearly. Three years later we were again blessed with our last child, a beautiful little girl named Melodi born in Missouri. Our family was complete. We still live in the same house, out in the middle of nowhere...exactly where we want to be.
We have had many, many Mother's Days. For the first few hours on the second Sunday in May, I get up early, make a pot of coffee and get out the scrapbooks. I smile, laugh and often cry when I see our past lives in photographs and written stories. It has been an adventure I would not have missed for the world.
Tomorrow Tami and the grandchildren, Jacy and Logan, will spend the afternoon with us. Our home will be loud and busy. Aromas of comfort food will fill the air with childhood memories. New photos and funny stories will be added to the memoir of our lives, becoming next year's memories while we continue to celebrate a lifetime of experiences and love.
Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful ladies in my life. Celebrate your day...you earned it.
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