The Rite of Passage......the Corsage!

Isis and Mikey Prom 2011

There are several moments in my daughter's life that I been waiting for from the moment the nurse said...."It's a Girl".

The day she was born, the day she was baptized, her first communion, her Sweet 16 and the next on her...wups...MY list.....her Senior Prom.

Saturday, May 14, 2011 was my babygirl's Senior Prom.

From the moment she told she was going to prom, my heart hasn't stopped fluttering because I felt like it was me going.

Something happens to parents when our children live their lives...we begin to live vicariously through them.

My prom was almost 25 years ago and for almost 25 years I've been talking about me having a do over and that do over happened this past Saturday evening when I saw my baby girl dressed in her Tiffany blue floor length gown. She looked so breath taking as she did when the doctor placed her in my arms 18 years ago.

She told me she wasn't going to have a date, that most of her friends were going stag. I asked her, "Baby, you sure, I don't want you to feel bad without a date."

You wanna know how my daughter answered me?

"Mommy, I don't need a guy to take me so I could have a good time at MY prom, I'll be with my friends, I'm going to have a good time regardless."

My daughter: She marches to the beat of her own drum!

However....I didn't want not having a corsage for her prom to haunt her......like moi.

I had her lil brother, Mikey present her with a corsage and what a better picture for a mother to have than the one above.

Before I was Mom.....

My Prince and Princess, Dec 2010

In honor of all my beautiful Mothers on Mother's Day, this is for you:

Before I was a Mom,

I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.

I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.

I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never been puked on.

Pooped on. Chewed on. Peed on.

I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.

I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,

I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests.

Or give shots. I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,

I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.

I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,

I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body...

I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.

I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.

I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom

May you always be overwhelmed by the Grace of God rather than by the cares of life!

Author Unknown

Happy Mothers Day

Remember to continue to:

Be Inspiring, Be Inspired

Instructions for Life According to the Dalai Lama XIV

His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama speaks at University California of Irvine 5 4 2011

Sometimes we need reminding on the simple things in life.

In honor of the Dalai Lama's visit to Southern California, I have found his "Instructions for Life", enjoy:

Instructions for life:

Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

When you lose, don't lose the lesson.

Follow the three R's:
- Respect for self.
- Respect for others.
- Responsibility for all your actions.

Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.

Don't let a little dispute injure a great relationship.

When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

Spend some time alone everyday.

Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.

Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.

A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.

In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.

Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.

Be gentle with the earth.

Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.

Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon."

Dalai Lama

Remember to continue to:

Be Inspiring, Be Inspired