My Mother's Day Tribute

Since I'm a few states away from my own Mother, I decided to work with what I have and write a blog about her.

Mom=Tanna Jo Hughes

So here you go Momma, I present to you...your very own blog post!

(imagine me dancing around throwing confetti in the air dramatically)

What is there to say about my Mom?

First off, she's just plain amazing.

She's always there for me. Whether it's for happiness, disappointment or sadness. She is always there to listen to me and cry along at times.

She was recently visiting when I got news that Lizzy (11-year-old girl that I lead in a church group) had suffered a major stroke. I was pretty upset. But Mom just held me and let me cry. We talked about Lizzy and some memories I had of her at the time. She had met her a couple of times so we just sat and talked. It helped me a lot. (Update: Lizzy is now doing so much better!)

After my Mom left, she continued to ask about Lizzy and I would read the updates to her that were emailed to me.

She has such an huge heart that mom of mine.

In fact her heart is so big that when she found out she would not be able to have children of her own, she and my Dad decided to adopt. And here I am. The result of that adoption. (well, actually my brother Steve is the 1st result, but I'M the 2nd!) I couldn't have asked for better parents.

I'd rave on more about my Dad, but sorry...this is MOTHER'S DAY. You'll get your post next month. Hee-hee!

I have to thank my mom for passing down her love of reading to me. When I was a teenager I would climb into her bed at night while she read. She always propped up her arms on a pillow while she read, so I would put my head down on the pillow and she would scratch my head until I felt sleepy enough to go to bed. It was so soothing and full of love.

So I grew up always seeing my mom read.

Because of that I have developed a pretty massive love for reading. I hope to be able to pass this love down to my own kids. Matthew does a little. I love sitting in my bed with one or both of my kids to quietly read and snuggle. It's very comforting.

I will say that I've also adopted the reading pillow habit from her. I'm just not comfy on my bed reading unless I have an extra pillow to put my book on.

She loves each and every one of her grand kids. There are 4 at the moment. *fingers crossed for more* (wink!!) And they love her just the same.

Another quick memory I want to share:

But first a little back story:

Matt joined the National Guard in October 2006. We didn't think we were going to have anymore babies at the time because Matthew was already 6.

Matt was scheduled to be in training for 8 months, so I decided to go stay with my parents, who lived in Arizona at the time.

Matt still denies he said this, but I know for a fact his memory...well, stinks. When we found out he was going to be gone for 8 months he joked that "wouldn't it be funny if you got pregnant and then I got back just in time for the baby and completely missed out on all the hormones and craziness? Wouldn't that be FUNNY!?" Ok, so not an exact quote, but you get what I'm trying to say here.

Back to Mom:

2 weeks after Matt left I take a pregnancy test and it comes up POSITIVE! I ran into my mom's room, where she was still sleeping, and started frantically waiving the stick! She went into "Mom-mode" and while comforting me that everything would be alright, led me into the computer room so we could look up Dr.s in the area.

Throughout the pregnancy she was there when I missed my husband. She told me that "You are the bravest woman I know." While at the time I didn't feel so brave, those words stuck to me throughout the rest of my time without Matt.

As I mentioned before, I'm adopted. So witnessing a live birth was somewhat new to my Mom. But she hung in there like a trooper for both of my labor and deliveries. She's one tough cookie!

I love her smile and to hear that laugh of hers.

So on this Mother's Day Momma, I hope you smile and laugh and remember that you mean the world to me.

"Can you feel my arms?" "They're wrapped around you, giving you a big hug."

I love you Momma!!!