Dear Tessa:

Welcome to the celebration that is Mother’s Day, where once a year you have to give your Mama lots and lots of extra love for a whole day 🙂

I feel pretty special today.  Because I am your mom.

Until now, I always thought Mother’s Day was a day where we were “supposed” to tell our moms how much we loved and appreciated them and/or get them a card to show just that.  I thought it was like any other day that came and passed every year.  Which it sort of is, but now that I am a mama I know what the other end of Mother’s Day feels like.

And it is awesome…

Being your mom has been beyond rewarding in ways I never thought possible.  Rewarding, yes.  But trying at times.  Among many of the things that I have learned in nine fast months, these tend to stand out:

1.)  While patience may be a virtue, I’ve found that it is a characteristic that needs to be learned, then acquired.

2.)  Having an organized schedule is great, but I’ll be honest–you pretty much call the shots each day.  So yeah…schedule-shmedule…

3.)  There is no such thing as packing too many diapers.

4.)  I am more and more like my mother these days…

5.)  The Jumperoo is by far the greatest toy that Fisher Price has ever came out with.

But these stand out a little bit more:

1.)  Your laughter makes me cry.

2.)  My heart swells for days when you reach a new milestone.  I know it is a right of passage for every child to reach their milestones, but for you my dear–it is a divine right.

3.)  Although at times I get a little jealous, I actually love how much of a daddy’s girl you are!

I know today is a day where the moms in the world are supposed to be recognized and thanked, but really I just want to thank you.  Because without you, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy this day like I do now.  Thank you…for teaching me how to be a mom–even if I struggle at it sometimes, for showing me how to really love someone, for teaching me patience, for opening my eyes.  Thank you for being my daughter.  The greatest gift you gave me was the privilege of being your mom.

Your dad says you are so lucky to have me, but really I think I’m the lucky one.

Love, Mom