As a child, I remember thinking of ways to make Mother's Day special for my mom. Typically, this consisted of attempting to make creative meals, which typically turned to slop, or making a homemade card. My mother always seemed so happy with the gestures, and I assumed that each and every Mother's Day was the BEST day of her life.........
And then................I became a Mother........
I quickly learned that Mother's Day is about survival, not glory. It's just a day, exactly like any other day. Well, not EXACTLY. On Mother's Day, there is an expectation that THIS day will be special: that mother's will feel cherished (revered even!), that the day will be more relaxing, easier somehow, that the world will bow to "Mothers Everywhere." There will be no need to discipline on this, most special day, because children everywhere will behave exactly as they are supposed to and spouses, if there is a spouse, will be as attentive and perfect as the children.
Well.......that's the expectation, anyway, right? Queen for a Day!
So, I began to hate Mother's Day. Not because I dislike being a mom in any way. I simply dislike the expectation that this day should be different from all other days. Every Mother's Day I would wake up, work just as hard, and go to bed just as tired, somehow feeling cheated out of a vague "special day" floating just beyond my reach.
Until this Mother's Day, anyway........
This Mother's Day, I learned a few lessons that have forced me to change my attitude about the day from one of survival to, dare I say it, joy.
Lesson #1: If your own child doesn't wake you up early, someone else's will. One of the Mother's Day Myths is that Mom gets to sleep in, right? So I tried to give that gift to myself, playing hard with Travis on Saturday and letting him stay up just a little late in hopes of not opening my eyes until at least 8:00 a.m. At precisely 7:15 I hear pounding on my front door. Grrr.........the neighbor child, age 6, is knocking to ask if Travis can play. I politely informed her it was too early to play and told her she should go wake her own Mommy up. Yup, that's me.........spreading Mother's Day joy. So, I crawl back in bed and just as I was drifting off, I hear........."Good Mornin, Mommy!!!" Guess what.............it was the sweetest voice ever and I was thrilled to hear it!
Lesson #2: Your child's gifts are precious, even if they want to keep them for themselves. Travis' wonderful teacher, Mrs. Fechik, worked with the children to make a beautiful, framed hand print and poem as a gift for all of her students' mothers. Usually, Travis doesn't want to wait to have me open any gift, but this year we managed to wait until Mother's Day. He, of course, unwrapped it and then quickly took it to his room and placed it proudly on his dresser. He gave me a sweet look, grabbed a piece of paper, traced his hand and said, "Here you go, Mom. You can have this one." It is now proudly displayed on my refrigerator.
Lesson #3: Mother's Day is what the Mom makes of it. Travis is a little young for the whole "Breakfast in Bed" phenomenon that seems to define Mother's Day. So I decided that I would take us both out for breakfast. Ummm.......hello......it's MOTHER'S DAY!!! Everything is jam packed. So there we are in the McDonald's drive through, picking up some Egg McMuffins, and I'm thinking........"Swell....McDonalds on Mother's Day." But you know what?? We took that to a little park that we rarely go to and ate in the beautiful morning sunshine. Afterwards, we plucked the dandelion tops off as many stems as we could and then buried our "gold" in the playground sand. Travis made sure to mark the spot with an "X" before we left, so that when we go back we can find our treasure. In the end, I'll take the memory of burying treasure and spinning on the merry-go-round until we're dizzy over having breakfast in some boring restaurant!
Lesson #4: Mother's Day is REALLY about the kids. And what mother would want it any other way??? After the park, I met up with a fellow mom and her three kids and we proceeded to play at a water park for the rest of the day. The kids had so much fun.........and Travis running to me multiple times throughout the day to throw his arms around me and shout, "I love you Mommy" was exactly what I realized I need. I don't need a break, or to be waited on, or even to have some fabulous gift. Making my little guy happy and seeing his joy was more than enough.
So this year, I did more than just survive Mother's Day.......I enjoyed every moment of it, understanding that reality can be way better than expectations, especially when you have a sense of humor!
Happy Mother's Day, everyone!!!!!!!
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Sunday, December 19, 2010
In Lieu of a Christmas Letter (and Card)
For the past several years, I have made it a point to send out Christmas Cards. I LOVE Christmas cards, and this has been a joy to undertake each year. I have noticed, however, that my efforts have dwindled some as the years have gone by. From homemade cards that a friend once dubbed "a gift in an envelope," to photo cards that I didn't even have to sign.....I have simplified things.
Except this year everything just rushed up on me and here I am, less than a week before Christmas, with no letter written, no pictures taken, no great stamps and supplies for beautiful homemade cards....NOTHING! Except this wonderful world of Cyber-Space and the fact that I am behind in the world of Blogging....yet again. So, in the true spirit of Christmas........I present to you.........My.......Christmas......Letter:
Ahem.....
December 2010
Dear Family and Friends,
Greetings! It's tough to believe another year has flown by so quickly! 2010 has brought us many ups and downs, much joy and some sorrow. Here are the highlights:
Travis is now 5 years old!! He is in Young 5's at Trinity Lutheran School in Paw Paw, MI. He LOVES school, and is doing very well. His teacher, Mrs. Fechik, is a true blessing. I don't know how she does it, but I am thankful for her ability to bring out truly the best in all of the boys (the Young 5's class consists of 6 boys....no girls!). I'm looking forward to seeing more growth in him over the rest of the school year. Of course, Travis is the tallest person in his class........he may be the tallest 5 year old in the state, but I'm not sure about that. Besides school, his favorite activities are playing, cooking, and making big messes. He says funny things every single day, and has enough energy for 3 little boys his age.
Lauren is now in 7th grade at Hillside Middle School in Kalamazoo. This year, she joined choir and participated in Girls on Track. She ran the WMU Turkey Trot 5K run in under 22 minutes! Currently her favorite activities include Facebook, playing the Wii and her DS, and being an almost-teenage diva. Unfortunately......we don't get to see her as much as we would like, but she is doing well and we look forward to the time we do get to spend together.
Melanie is still working at the Van Buren ISD as a Teacher Consultant for Students with Autism. My work is never dull, and she loves it. She spends the rest of her time either trying to keep up with Travis or clean up after him!
April brought us a special treat......Disney World!! Travis, Melanie, and Grandma piled in the car and spent Spring Break in Florida. We enjoyed the warm weather, spent a couple of days at Disney, and even got to see some cousins that we hadn't been able to see in a while! Travis is asking when we can go back!
2010 has taught us to cherish our parents/grandparents. In late 2009/early 2010, Melanie's step-dad contracted a staph infection from a knee replacement surgery. He spent half of 2009 and almost half of 2010 on IV antibiotics, having more surgeries, and being homebound. Then in June 2010, Melanie's dad had a kidney removed due to a large cancerous tumor. Thankfully for both of them, they are now healthy and strong and, hopefully, past their ordeals. Unfortunately, though, we lost our Nana (Melanie's step-mom) to small cell lung cancer on October 30, 2010. Travis had the best attitude of all of us, when he celebrated her getting to see Jesus rather than focusing on the sadness. We miss Nana tremendously, and thank God for our healthy Papa, Grandma, and Grandpa.
To each of our family and friends........Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! We Love You All!!!
Melanie, Travis, and Lauren
So there it is.........does THIS count as a Christmas greeting from the Giddings'?!?!?!?!? I'll let you be the judge!
Except this year everything just rushed up on me and here I am, less than a week before Christmas, with no letter written, no pictures taken, no great stamps and supplies for beautiful homemade cards....NOTHING! Except this wonderful world of Cyber-Space and the fact that I am behind in the world of Blogging....yet again. So, in the true spirit of Christmas........I present to you.........My.......Christmas......Letter:
Ahem.....
December 2010
Dear Family and Friends,
Greetings! It's tough to believe another year has flown by so quickly! 2010 has brought us many ups and downs, much joy and some sorrow. Here are the highlights:
Travis is now 5 years old!! He is in Young 5's at Trinity Lutheran School in Paw Paw, MI. He LOVES school, and is doing very well. His teacher, Mrs. Fechik, is a true blessing. I don't know how she does it, but I am thankful for her ability to bring out truly the best in all of the boys (the Young 5's class consists of 6 boys....no girls!). I'm looking forward to seeing more growth in him over the rest of the school year. Of course, Travis is the tallest person in his class........he may be the tallest 5 year old in the state, but I'm not sure about that. Besides school, his favorite activities are playing, cooking, and making big messes. He says funny things every single day, and has enough energy for 3 little boys his age.
Lauren is now in 7th grade at Hillside Middle School in Kalamazoo. This year, she joined choir and participated in Girls on Track. She ran the WMU Turkey Trot 5K run in under 22 minutes! Currently her favorite activities include Facebook, playing the Wii and her DS, and being an almost-teenage diva. Unfortunately......we don't get to see her as much as we would like, but she is doing well and we look forward to the time we do get to spend together.
Melanie is still working at the Van Buren ISD as a Teacher Consultant for Students with Autism. My work is never dull, and she loves it. She spends the rest of her time either trying to keep up with Travis or clean up after him!
April brought us a special treat......Disney World!! Travis, Melanie, and Grandma piled in the car and spent Spring Break in Florida. We enjoyed the warm weather, spent a couple of days at Disney, and even got to see some cousins that we hadn't been able to see in a while! Travis is asking when we can go back!
2010 has taught us to cherish our parents/grandparents. In late 2009/early 2010, Melanie's step-dad contracted a staph infection from a knee replacement surgery. He spent half of 2009 and almost half of 2010 on IV antibiotics, having more surgeries, and being homebound. Then in June 2010, Melanie's dad had a kidney removed due to a large cancerous tumor. Thankfully for both of them, they are now healthy and strong and, hopefully, past their ordeals. Unfortunately, though, we lost our Nana (Melanie's step-mom) to small cell lung cancer on October 30, 2010. Travis had the best attitude of all of us, when he celebrated her getting to see Jesus rather than focusing on the sadness. We miss Nana tremendously, and thank God for our healthy Papa, Grandma, and Grandpa.
To each of our family and friends........Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! We Love You All!!!
Melanie, Travis, and Lauren
So there it is.........does THIS count as a Christmas greeting from the Giddings'?!?!?!?!? I'll let you be the judge!
Monday, November 22, 2010
The Faith of a Child
Wow.....it's easy to get "behind" on this blogging thing. I had thought it would be easy to pour out post after post of humorous anecdotes. Unfortunately, it's been a rather somber and draining few weeks. During this time, my beautiful and brilliant son has taught me more than I ever thought possible. But first, let me back up....
My Bonus Mom (aka step-mother) was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer in early August. Unfortunately this was not caught early (though it should have been), and everything progressed very quickly. On October 19th, doctors confirmed that the cancer had reached her brain, and on October 30, we said our earthly goodbyes. Throughout this time, I travelled back and forth as much as I could to spend time with my family and help in any way I could think of. Travis, of course, came with me. Mostly, he stayed with his Grandma.......he only saw "sick Nana" once.
On the evening of her passing, I returned home to Travis and set him on my lap, giving him a big hug. Here is a replay of our conversation:
Me: "Travis, remember how Nana has been sick?"
Travis: "Yes."
Me: "Well, today she went to see Jesus."
Travis (jumping off my lap and pumping his arm like the Spartans had just scored a game winning play): "YES!! Now she gets to be in Heaven!"
You might think that this isn't such a big deal. But after the very sad and emotional day I'd had it was just the right perspective. It continued a few minutes later when he asked me, "Mom, did you see Nana float up to Heaven? Because if you did you should have grabbed her and gone with her to see God. That's what I would have done." I could think of nothing profound to say in response to his innocent excitement over the prospect of coming face to face with Almighty God.....so I just gave him a squeeze.
And so it goes.......daily he expresses his faith in profoundly simple ways. Scripture says to "train up a child in the way he should go...." Honestly, I think that my son is teaching me at least as much as I try to teach him. Today as we were driving home from school he said, "Mom, I want to be a guy who digs up graves." My first thought? Too much Scooby Doo. I decided to humor him and ask him why. He responded, "Well, because I want to see that guy who tries to pull people away from God and tell him to shut up." Amused, I said, "Do you mean the devil?" Travis said, "Yea...that guy. I think he's just stupid. Why would anyone want to leave God?"
My Bonus Mom (aka step-mother) was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer in early August. Unfortunately this was not caught early (though it should have been), and everything progressed very quickly. On October 19th, doctors confirmed that the cancer had reached her brain, and on October 30, we said our earthly goodbyes. Throughout this time, I travelled back and forth as much as I could to spend time with my family and help in any way I could think of. Travis, of course, came with me. Mostly, he stayed with his Grandma.......he only saw "sick Nana" once.
On the evening of her passing, I returned home to Travis and set him on my lap, giving him a big hug. Here is a replay of our conversation:
Me: "Travis, remember how Nana has been sick?"
Travis: "Yes."
Me: "Well, today she went to see Jesus."
Travis (jumping off my lap and pumping his arm like the Spartans had just scored a game winning play): "YES!! Now she gets to be in Heaven!"
You might think that this isn't such a big deal. But after the very sad and emotional day I'd had it was just the right perspective. It continued a few minutes later when he asked me, "Mom, did you see Nana float up to Heaven? Because if you did you should have grabbed her and gone with her to see God. That's what I would have done." I could think of nothing profound to say in response to his innocent excitement over the prospect of coming face to face with Almighty God.....so I just gave him a squeeze.
And so it goes.......daily he expresses his faith in profoundly simple ways. Scripture says to "train up a child in the way he should go...." Honestly, I think that my son is teaching me at least as much as I try to teach him. Today as we were driving home from school he said, "Mom, I want to be a guy who digs up graves." My first thought? Too much Scooby Doo. I decided to humor him and ask him why. He responded, "Well, because I want to see that guy who tries to pull people away from God and tell him to shut up." Amused, I said, "Do you mean the devil?" Travis said, "Yea...that guy. I think he's just stupid. Why would anyone want to leave God?"
Sunday, October 10, 2010
To Blog or Not To Blog.....
So, my friend Christine suggested I start blogging.....mostly because my son, Travis (age 5) says a lot of humorous stuff that I tend to post on my Facebook Page. But I started to think about her request.......I did, after all, at one point want to be an author. Plus, I already had title of my first book picked out. So I decided, "Why not?" The chances of the book every coming to fruition are pretty minimal, and I really should record some "stories" to look back on. Life is so short....and this could be a fun adventure in recording things, right??
You may be wondering about my title: Between Oxygen and Glamour. That WAS going to be the title of my first book. I came up with it several years ago (ok....about a decade ago) while torturing myself on an eliptical at the gym. To my right was a woman in FULL makeup.....hair perfect......outfit totally trendy and form-fitting. I had the feeling that she would have worn high heels had she been allowed. Of course, her body was perfect, and as I watched her work out I couldn't help but notice that she hadn't even broken a sweat........the integrity of her pristine appearance remained intact. As I was thinking about what her life must be like, I glanced over to my left. On a recumbant bike sat an elderly man.......probably in his 70's. He had an oxygen tank sitting beside him, with tubes leading from the tank to his nostrils. So I finished my workout pondering this little arrangement........ending up with more questions than answers. Why do we value the things that we value? What is really important in our lives......the external appearance of being "together" or the will to never give up improving ourselves? And....in all of my wonderings.....this is what I came up with: that I am between Oxygen and Glamour. Not only that....some days I'm a little closer to one end of that spectrum than the other.....and then back again. But then again.....I think we all are........if we're honest with ourselves.
So there it is............my first ever blog. I have a feeling this WILL be a fun endeavor.
You may be wondering about my title: Between Oxygen and Glamour. That WAS going to be the title of my first book. I came up with it several years ago (ok....about a decade ago) while torturing myself on an eliptical at the gym. To my right was a woman in FULL makeup.....hair perfect......outfit totally trendy and form-fitting. I had the feeling that she would have worn high heels had she been allowed. Of course, her body was perfect, and as I watched her work out I couldn't help but notice that she hadn't even broken a sweat........the integrity of her pristine appearance remained intact. As I was thinking about what her life must be like, I glanced over to my left. On a recumbant bike sat an elderly man.......probably in his 70's. He had an oxygen tank sitting beside him, with tubes leading from the tank to his nostrils. So I finished my workout pondering this little arrangement........ending up with more questions than answers. Why do we value the things that we value? What is really important in our lives......the external appearance of being "together" or the will to never give up improving ourselves? And....in all of my wonderings.....this is what I came up with: that I am between Oxygen and Glamour. Not only that....some days I'm a little closer to one end of that spectrum than the other.....and then back again. But then again.....I think we all are........if we're honest with ourselves.
So there it is............my first ever blog. I have a feeling this WILL be a fun endeavor.
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