Celebrate
Something happens when you have a baby. Among other things, you become intrigued about yourself as an infant. After months of hearing Hudson looks exactly like Dan, acts like Dan, and pretty much everything exactly like Dan, I wanted to see my own baby pictures to see if there are any glimmers of me in that sweet smiley face. So during a trip home, my mom brought out the books and I got a glimpse of my baby years. And while I did see photos of myself that reminded me of Hudson, that wasn't what struck me. There were a number of photos of us with cakes proudly proclaiming numbers: 3, 4, 5 and so on. I looked at mom questioning what this was for. "Your month birthdays." she said with a smile. Even before I could partake in the cakes, my mom, dad and siblings celebrated each month of my life.
This got me thinking. Recently there has been a lot of talk of Tiger Mothers, the Chinese culture and pressure on children to make them the best, to strive to reach their full potential by setting high expectations and settling for nothing less. A tiger mother my mom was not. Instead, she and my dad celebrated my life, my milestones and each of my accomplishments with joy and support. Just as my baby book displayed, each moment of my life has been relished and celebrated.
Last night, as Dan, Hudson and I had our annual "first day of school" ritual of spaghetti and chocolate chip cookies (since no one is in school I just arbitrarily picked last night.. maybe it was the beautiful weather and the farewell to summer that Labor Day often brings,) I thought about what kind of mom I am and how I hope to be.
Maybe the tiger mom way is a proven method for successful children, but I think celebrating life and accomplishments, no matter how small, is a much more fun.
Thank you Mom and Dad, for celebrating me, for who I was, who I am now, and for all the steps along the way.
And in the spirit of celebration, here's a peek of our very own 18 month celebration for Hudson. Dan took the day off, we spent an extra special day as a family and ended our day with cupcakes. Any excuse for cupcakes, right? Oh, and Huddy is a big fan of ribs!
This got me thinking. Recently there has been a lot of talk of Tiger Mothers, the Chinese culture and pressure on children to make them the best, to strive to reach their full potential by setting high expectations and settling for nothing less. A tiger mother my mom was not. Instead, she and my dad celebrated my life, my milestones and each of my accomplishments with joy and support. Just as my baby book displayed, each moment of my life has been relished and celebrated.
Last night, as Dan, Hudson and I had our annual "first day of school" ritual of spaghetti and chocolate chip cookies (since no one is in school I just arbitrarily picked last night.. maybe it was the beautiful weather and the farewell to summer that Labor Day often brings,) I thought about what kind of mom I am and how I hope to be.
Maybe the tiger mom way is a proven method for successful children, but I think celebrating life and accomplishments, no matter how small, is a much more fun.
Thank you Mom and Dad, for celebrating me, for who I was, who I am now, and for all the steps along the way.
And in the spirit of celebration, here's a peek of our very own 18 month celebration for Hudson. Dan took the day off, we spent an extra special day as a family and ended our day with cupcakes. Any excuse for cupcakes, right? Oh, and Huddy is a big fan of ribs!
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