Happy Birthday To My Momsey!

On January 27, 1949, the most amazing woman in this world was born. That woman is my mom. Today marks her 60th birthday, and she is becoming more and more remarkable every year. As a little girl, I can remember her taking the time to come up with fun things to do like melting crayons in wax paper to make our own stained glass masterpieces or cooking styrofoam cups in the oven until they turned into sombrero hats to paint. She has always loved to travel with my Dad, and by the time I was two, I had already seen more of the world than most people do in a lifetime. She recently retired from a long teaching career where she helped countless students to learn the fundamentals needed for their education. While she was never my teacher in the classroom, she has always been my best teacher. I can recall many late nights where she would stay up with me to help me with my homework, help me study for an exam, or to proof read a paper. She is still the one I turn to when I need someone to proof read any of my work! She taught me so much more than what I needed to know for school… she taught me what I needed to know for life like how to be a good friend, a good wife, and a good mother.

She probably often felt like a taxi driver, having to drive the 40-minute drive to and from Florence to take me to gymnastics every day of the week for 8 years. For a woman who detests driving at night, this was a chore in itself. She rarely complained about having to do it… instead she would help come up with fun games to play as we boogied down I-95. I still find myself playing the ABC game whenever I am on a road trip!

If you were to ask her, she would tell you that she has never been athletic, and that she is not very coordinated. While this may be true, I have to say that she is the most outstanding cheerleader that I have ever known. No, she wasn’t at the top of a pyramid waving her pom-poms. She was at the top of the bleachers screaming her head off for my Dad’s football and basketball teams! She was often the one who prompted the cheerleaders on the field to either take up the chant “DEFENSE!” or “GO GO GO!” And she was always in the crowd cheering for me to do my best whether it was for little league T-ball, gymnastics, cheerleading competitions, or Jr. Miss pageants.

Like most mother-daughter relationships, ours was sometimes strained during my teenage years. I am to blame for this, as I was a typical “know-it-all” teenager who was oblivious to the fact that my mom has always been wise beyond her years. Luckily, I grew up along the way and came to realize that she does have all the answers. I may not always like what I hear, but her advice is now the first that I seek. I probably sometimes drive her crazy, because I am known to phone her MULTIPLE times a day! She is the one I turn to, good or bad. There is NOTHING that I can't tell her. She has become my best friend.

She loves everything about the beach. She is my Dad’s first mate when they go fishing, and she isn’t afraid to get fish guts all over her. It doesn’t matter if she is on the jet-ski or in the boat, she is happy to just be on the water. She loves to sit on the end of the pier, working on her tan with a good book in her hand.

She is a woman of God, and she made sure that I learned about our Lord and Savior at a very early age. She had me in church every Sunday and often on Wednesday nights as well. She was always a source of constant strength and knowledge as I developed my faith. She taught me the difference between right and wrong, and she taught me to make the proper decisions for my life. I may not have always made the right choices, but she also taught me that God is forgiving. Thankfully, so is my Mom.

She is the type of wife that I aspire to be. She is patient, loving, supportive, devoted, and encouraging. I have never witnessed a harsh word between my parents, and their marriage has only grown stronger over the years. Not only are they husband and wife, they are soul mates, teammates, and best friends.

My mom continues to surprise and impress me in her retired life. She and my Dad are “chasing the dream” in their motor home as they travel across the country. She has substituted her role as first mate of the boat to become first mate of the motor home. She has taken to the road and traveling as if she has been doing it her whole life. Now, at the age of 60, I think she is just hitting her prime. She’s making new friends, seeing all the sights, and making a lifelong dream come true. She has taken up water aerobics, she’s walking, she’s biking… she’s even kayaking! She is becoming that athletic person that she never was before! And none of it comes as a surprise to me. In my eyes, there is nothing that my mom can’t do. If she wants it, she will make it happen.

She’s the coolest woman I know. She’s hip and she’s fun. She’s Reagan’s Momsey. She’s my mommy, my momma, my mom. She’s my role model. She’s my best friend.

I love her with all my heart!

Happy 60th Birthday Mom!


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