Time Flies

 

Two of my favorite photos of all time for you today. 

(I'm the short one.)

I remember so distinctly how I felt when my first daughter was about 2 weeks old. 

My mother came to Florida to help me with the birth of our first daughter in 1991 (and again for our second daughter in 1994). I had a C-section both times, and in 1991 Kelsey also had to stay in the hospital for 10 days for antibiotics. They thought she had neonatal pneumonia due to aspiration of amniotic fluid. She was big and healthy, and aside from the IV antibiotics and velcro sunglasses for jaundice, she was perfect. We were and continue to be very thankful. 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch - Mama (that's me) was recovering from major surgery. That was the easy part. When Kelsey came home at 10 days old was when the fun began. 

Motherhood is the greatest opportunity for growth for any woman on the planet - I firmly believe that. No matter how sore or exhausted you may be, there is a new person who depends completely upon your ability to nurture through the pain. Life suddenly becomes one huge slumber party - without the slumbering. At one point, I was so exhausted from walking the floor with my little Dictator that I was actually in tears. My mother said calmly: "I'll take her, dear." I can hear her voice right now, and it brings tears to my eyes still (the good kind). 

It was at that moment in my life when I truly appreciated what my mother went through to have four children in four years (1957-1960). She did not have electronic babysitters (video OR audio), nor did she have the convenience of disposable diapers and nursery monitors. 

That Moment = Pedestal + Mother

I have always adored my mother, but at that moment, I truly knew the depth of her love for her children. 

Now that I'm a mother, I understand. I love her more now than I ever have, despite the fact that she has Alzheimer's and doesn't know who I am. One thing she does know is that I love her, and she loves "that girl" too. 

My two children are now 17 and 19 and will hopefully be mothers themselves within the next decade or so. If I can only measure up to what my mother did for me. My... how time does fly.