Dropping the ball

Ok, so today I have a confession to make.  I am afraid to say that I have dropped the ball on a promise that I made to you a while back. Last December I posted about being on the path to greatness.  As a part of this, I made a vow to make a life change by sending along some real, thoughtful positive feedback to one person each day for 21 days.  (an idea I got from a book called the Happiness Advantage - A pretty good read too) 

My plan was to start of with the easy stuff...  I sent a note to my daughters day care director thanking her for always being so flexible with me and our ever changing schedules.  I sent an email to my Aunt Angela, as I had said I would... though to this day I have no idea if she's ever read it.  I even sent a letter to my former boss thanking him for showing me what a real, healthy work environment should look like.  And then...  I dropped the ball.  I did send out a few more letters here and there, but not nearly equivalent to what I had committed to.  Also, I never really got to the tough letters.  The ones I was leaving till the end, and quite frankly to the people who probably have the most significant impact on my day-to-day life!  Oops. 

So, as a means of penance, I am going to start over today, and I am going to start with the hardest letter first.  Mom...  This one's for you. 

Dear Mom,

Thank you for being the best friend I never knew I needed you to be.  For stepping up to the plate when ever I needed a partner, in anything...  wedding planning, family planning, career planning...  literally anything.  Thank you for sacrificing hundreds (more like millions) of your own needs in exchange for my happiness and for being available any time day or night when I needed an ear or a shoulder to cry on... or sob... or ugly cry.

Thank you Mom for teaching me.  For teaching me manners so that I can be confident and professional as an adult in public.  Thank you for teaching me grammar, so that I can cringe along with you every time someone says "These ones" or "Those ones."  Thank you for teaching me courtesy and empathy so that I can be a better human being and continue to make the world a better place.  Most importantly, thank you for teaching me how to be a Mom too, for it is your example I follow each and every day as I raise my daughter all the very same lessons that you have taught me.

Thank you for continuing to challenge me, for showing me the bigger picture when my emotions have taken control of my brain... even when I don't want to hear it.  

Lastly, Thank you for loving me through every ugly phase, through every mean comment I made to you.... through all of the great times, and all of the really hard moments too.

I am lucky I got to have you as my Mom.

All my love...  Jenn

Here is a picture of me and my Mom a few months before my daughter was born.