My mom

T.J. and I were on a cruise when we found out about my mom. Now I really know what it’s like to be “stuck on a boat”. She was watching my cats for me while we were on vacation, as she always did. She was also watching my nephew Matthew during the first few days while we were gone. I’m so glad I called her numerous times before we left, you never know when it will be the last time you speak with someone you love. She probably thought I was annoying, but I just wanted to check that Matthew wasn’t giving my kitties a hard time. I also wanted to check that she wasn’t over feeding my kitties too much, as she does like to spoil them with food & treats.


My mom was the best at making lunches (she made mine until I moved out). I could have pop and 2 desserts in my lunch if I wanted. She was also a great cook and really enjoyed sharing her food with others. I’ve never left her house hungry. She always asked what everyone’s favorite snacks were, and they just “happen” to be at her house if you came over. She knew that T.J. loved chex mix and reeses peanut butter cups. There would always be a bowl out of chex mix and she would give T.J. a TON of reeses. When I insisted that T.J. did not need anymore reeses, she would put some in his pockets when I wasn’t looking.


She LOVED to garden and I called her often with questions about my own. I’ve had a secret competition with her the last few years with our vegetables….she’s always won.


My mom was very thoughtful. She sent cards for every holiday, and always gave us some “just in case” money.


She made every holiday a big deal with a big feast. For my birthday I always had a mint chocolate chip ice cream cake and she let me eat it for breakfast every day until it was gone. Christmas was the best with lots of presents and lots of food. She had a very good rule for Christmas…..if you don’t believe in Santa then you don’t get any Santa presents. We still believe in Santa.


She always teased me about how I need to learn how to make gravy, as I have always just used the canned stuff. Santa even gave me “gravy master” in my stocking at Christmas. I wish I would have taken the hint.


My mom loved to read books. She could read 2 a day. She couldn’t really believe that I was her daughter, seeing that I don’t like to read. When I was a young girl she paid me 50 cents per chapter book I read, and I would need to give her an oral book report after each one. I don’t think I ever made more than $2.


I remember when I tried to teach my mom to use the computer. She was not a super huge fan of technology and did not shop online or use email. It took her awhile to even learn how to turn the computer on. When I first showed her how to use it, she picked up the mouse and tried to point it at the screen like a remote control. It was so funny.


The best was when she got Facebook. I though YES! This is going to be awesome. Within days of being on Facebook she had numerous friends, and within weeks she was uploading pictures and posting videos from You Tube. If someone posted their status or some pictures she was the first one to “like” it or comment. Who was this person? Not the mom who didn’t know how to really use the computer a few weeks earlier.


She was a great mom and a great friend. She was very loving and very loved. There are no words to say how unexpected all of this was. There are no words to say how special you made me feel. There are no words to say how much we will miss you.