my mom

Once upon a time there was a little girl...
who grew up in Cranford
who was naughty
who was the smartest
who was chubby
who was funny
who was tough
who was kind

She grew up and was still all those things, only add "er" naughtier, smartester, chu(well, she lost the baby fat -see above pic) funnier, tougher and kinder. She raised us (almost singlehandedly but not quite) as her primary function. She can do anything, and has seen a lot of the world. She's been lucky and unlucky, loved and not so much loved. I am quite sure that she is better than your mom.

Once upon a time there was another little girl who grew up everywhere and nowhere, who was naughty -- hell, downright bad, the smartest --but didn't believe it -- but the above mentioned little girl always did, was the chubb--no surpassed that achievement to the fattest ever, is funny, is very tough and tries to be kind.

Although I'll never have as much artistic talent -- my mom can do art ha ha!! And I'll never play Beethoven --my mom CAN ha ha, I'll never crosstich across America one little x at a time, I'll never know the latin names for all the foliage not only at my home but the homes of the founding fathers, and I'll never be as tough and as kind as it has taken to stay with and be a loving loyal wife to my dad for 51 years and counting...the biggest "I'll never..." is the one that is the hardest to admit: I'll never be as good a mom. I'm the best I can be and I have made it the most important thing in my life, because she taught me to, but I can't top that one.

I can't claim it as my achievement, but I can offer this small gift to my mom, you now have one grandchild who has successfully completed one year of college. (Today, well tomorrow actually on mother's day, we'll go pick her up and bring her here.)