Happy Birthday, Mom!

Hi everyone, and thank you for the sweet birthday messages.  It was a nice day that turned extra special because my niece happened to be born on my birthday.  I am so excited to share that day with the newest addition to our family!!!  My heart just melts.

Well, today we are taking another break from decorating and DIY so I can give a big birthday shout-out to my mom!  I am so lucky we get to have our birthdays so close together.

 

Where to begin? It is too hard, so let’s just say I hit won the lottery with moms.  My mom is strong, dedicated, fun, sincere, and someone I love so much.  Mom talked about our relationship, and I agree that it is a great mother/daughter relationship.  How she raised me has a lot to do with it.  I had a wonderful childhood, and I have to thank my mom for it.  She is so supportive and a great listener.

The older I get, the stronger our relationship gets.  She has been with me through the highs and lows.  This blog has been one of the best things for us because it keeps us even closer.  We get to chat daily  – not just about life –  but our fun hobby, this blog. We still laugh that we are still doing it and still have things to write about most days.

 

I mentioned my mom is strong and while she might not have enjoyed our biking trip across the Sahara as much as I did, it takes a STRONG woman to join part way through a trip.  She learned to set up a tent, go days without a shower, bike, bike and bike in wind storms and hot, hot, hot conditions. We did have some days off and created some memories that we laugh about now.  One day in Fez, Morocco we decided we would do a much needed “spa” day.  We decided to do more the local experience which is a public hammam.  Oh, boy, did we have the local experience!  Since we were not locals, we had two female guides take us through how it works.  We didn’t know the language, and we were naked.  Talk about being exposed.  We followed along and tried to relax, but many times our faces met, and we just started laughing.  Here we are naked in Morocco, and water was being thrown all over us and then we were exfoliated and basically rubbed raw.  That was followed by cold water being thrown on us.  I doubt either of us would do a hammam again, but anytime we talk about it, we just burst out laughing.  So, my mom is a good sport and is up to try new things. Did I mention she has even gone skydiving!!!

My mom is one reason I have the travel bug, and it is so awesome to travel with her.  She is always aware of others and other cultures.  She didn’t want me to live in a bubble and wanted to make sure I have my eyes open to see the world.  We have been able to take our share of girls trips to Europe for long weekends or spend a week biking through France.  I look forward to doing the same with my daughter.

Being a grandmother aka Ya Ya suits my mom.  She is as loving and as fun as can be with Little Miss.  Little Miss requests to Facetime or Skype with Ya Ya every morning at breakfast and both faces light up when they see each other.  I learned everything about how to be good mom from my mom, she is the best teacher.

I could go on and on, but I wanted to share my mom’s just the best mom.  I want to wish her the happiest birthdays.  Please join me in telling her Happy Birthday!!!

 

Cheers