A perfect celebration

Saturday was Mom's 60th Surprise Bash.  I have been working on this party since October.  Planning, devising guest lists, creating unique invitations, aquiring responses, composing a memory book and on and on.  Julie and I have spent many daunting hours making sure that this celebration was absolutely perfect.  Julie and Mikey worked their tails off on a slideshow that was the perfect tribute of Mom and her 60 years on this earth.  It was eloquent and beautiful.  Rob and Amanda worked on ordering a cake that was the perfect token of all the things Mom has always loved.  I spent countless hours creating a memory book complete of the attendee's favorite memories.  There were centerpieces consisting of chocolate covered delights my mother in law and I dipped along with just the right pictures of Mom displayed on each table.  There were no "i's" not dotted and no "t" not crossed.  I could barely breath on Saturday I was such a bundle of anixiety and nerves but when Mom walked through that door with a smile as bright as the sun, I finally realized that all of our hard work had paid off.  We did it!  The evening went off without a hitch and it was such an honor to have so many wonderful family members and close friends there to share in it all.  It was the perfect, perfect evening and I will always remember the way my mother looked that night.  Full of delight and smiles.  I love you all for helping to create this memory for my family.  You have no idea how much this night meant to us!  Shannon, my darling friend.  You being their to capture the night in photographs is a gift that we could never repay.  To have these memories, smiles and laughter instilled in your pictures is a gift beyond words.  THANK YOU!  THANK YOU!  THANK YOU!  Mom, I love you more than you will ever know.  Happy 60 Years!  May you always remember how much you are loved.  Here is the page I wrote for the Memory Book:

Mom,

How is it possible for me to choose just one memory of you to write about? There are sooooo many memories that I can’t even begin to choose! From as early as I can remember you have always been the one woman who could do it all. As a child, there was nothing that you did not do for us. We always had the best meals on the dinner table. We were always adorned in the most beautiful clothes usually sewn and created by you. We were raised with respect, dignity and love. ALL of our holidays were undeniably the best ever and there were so many traditions that you and Dad kept in place, year after year. When I look back upon my childhood, I can honestly say that I could not have wished for a better one. I am so blessed to have had the childhood that I had and I owe it all to you and Dad. You made sure to make each moment count. Each moment mean something. They truly did.

Now that’s not to say that EVERY second was all rainbows and lollipops and there were certainly plenty of times when you wanted to kill me. Like when I use to have the habit of yanking my closet door off the track or when Robbie and I would fight like cats and dogs. Do you remember the time in the camper that you got so sick of us fighting that you banged our heads together? Yes, that one is imbedded in my memory. How many times we would fight in the mornings about what I was wearing or how my hair was done. (Yes… Hannah has taken care of getting me back for this one) How about the time Robbie and I walked down to Debbie Aceto’s (who was sick in bed) and thought we were doing something nice by washing her car with Jennifer and Alyson, but instead, we used Fantastic all over her car widows? Yup, you were pretty ticked off at that one. Or how about the time I jumped off the swing at school and lied about it? Yep, you and Dad marched me right in to apologize to Mrs. Kenyon. My brain is a little foggy but I also remember Julie being an itch one time while we were at KFC. You were behind the counter taking orders and I was washing the front doors with Windex and you happened to catch me spraying it right in her eyes. You proceeded to hop over the front counter to smack me upside the head. I won’t even get into all the health issues I had and all the ambulance rides and scares I gave you and Dad. Time after time, you were there to take care of me. (As you know, God got me back tenfold on that one too!) Yes, there were certainly some time when I got on your nerves but there were also some really special times between us as well. Remember the time you and I went to see Beaches together? We were sharing a pack of M&M’s and when Whitney died, the two of us began blubbering so hard that before we realized it, all the M&M’s had spilled on the floor! One by one we heard them spilling and rolling down the movie theater floor. There were also the countless mornings when I would be getting ready in the bathroom and you would serve me my morning coffee. (Sure do miss that!) Remember when you, Joanie, Melissa and I headed up to Boston and had a grand ol’ time stomping around? Where there was a guy doing a gravestone rubbing and another man was so mad… “Blayton Disrespect!” How about the time you messed up your hair dye and ended up with orange roots? I had to soak your head in Tide with Bleach! There were also countless Thelma & Louise moments and times where we would secretly hide our shenanigans from Dad! (We’ll keep those memories to ourselves!) These are just a few of my many, MANY memories of you.

As I have grown older and wiser (I think), there is one thing that has unquestionably come to the surface of my mind and that is my respect for you as a mother. All those years you made it seem so effortless. All of it! The working, the raising us, the putting on these fabulous holidays, the taking care of us while we were sick, I have no idea how you did it and how you did it so darn well! You made it look so easy! You were hardly ever frazzled by it. (Except for the time Julie ripped your contacts up and hid them behind the toilet) You were definitely frazzled then! However, now as a mother of three young children myself, I have an undeniable respect for you. You are the woman, wife and mother I aspire to be. You are the truest model of the Super Woman. You are the woman who can do it all. You have done it all Mom and I have not a single clue how you did it! HA!

However, this assignment was supposed to be to pick ONE memory. So I am going to narrow it down to one of my favorite memories that just so happens to be from my adult life. It was just you and I at my Maplecrest home and one teeny bitty little baby who was only 4lbs 12 ounces, named Hannah. She was a mere three days old and we found ourselves on a hot July morning staring at her in awe. I knew I had to bath her for the first time and I was scared to death. I had barely gotten use to holding her without thinking I was going to break her. How the heck was I going to give her a bath without getting her umbilical cord wet? You came right to my rescue. Upstairs we went into her bedroom. You had me fill up the rectangular puke bowl that they sent me home from the hospital with. We placed it on the rug in her beach themed bedroom and step by step you showed me what to do. You showed me how to keep parts of her covered while we washed her so she wouldn’t get cold. I can still hear your voice telling me that “This is what Memere had taught me to do with you kids.” For a moment, I could have sworn I felt Memere’s presence with us that day. It was such a beautiful moment for me. The three generations of daughters together. Actually 4 generations if you count Memere’s presence. It’s a moment that I will always keep close in my heart. A hot summer’s day, having my Mother show me how to bath my daughter for the first time. That right there, is what this life is all about.

Together, as a family, we have been through it all. We have celebrated many happy times and we have also picked each other up from many trying times as well. It’s during those trying times when we have all banded together as only a family like ours can do, that I have realized that I am the luckiest girl on the planet to have been placed in such a beautiful family with you as the Matriarch. We are a one of a kind family and we owe it all to you and Dad for making it that way.

So today, on your 60th Birthday, I wish you nothing short of rainbows and lollipops, many more days of beautiful sunshine and a lifetime of warm, loving hugs from the family that loves you most! Happy Birthday Mom!

I LOVE YOU!

Love Kerri

These are only a few of the pictures from the evening!