A Tribute to My Mom

Hi everyone.

I have been working on this post for a few days now and think it's finally ready. I just want to share some thoughts and photos with you so you can get a better understanding of who my mom was. I also wanted to do this for myself and for her.

When I get sad, I try to remember what my mom would say or want me to do. She very rarely complained about anything. We found a small piece of paper in her wallet that had a lovely little saying: "If you don't like something in your life, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude about it. Always live with an open mind." That is exactly how my mom lived her life. She had such optimism, a deep faith in God, a love for life and an amazing positive attitude. No wonder she had such a good life. In the end she was not afraid to die, which was very comforting to all of us. She knew she was going to a better place and would finally be with my father again. I remember what she said to my sister a few weeks ago, when Nancy was starting to cry. My mom said, "No tears, Nancy. There are worse things than death, ya know." That was typical mom. She was a tough little lady. She also told us many times that she was ready, because she had lived a good, long life.

I want to share a few pictures of my mom with you. They all come from a little book that my sister made for my mom for her birthday, using shutterfly.com. She surprised us that day by giving each one of us our own copy. I took photos of the pictures in the book, so they're not the best. Hopefully you can see them alright. My mom was so beautiful, not only on the outside, but inside too!

This first one is the cover of the book. It shows all 6 of us kids together. The title reads, Summers...Growing Up. (My maiden name is Summers.) I'm the one in the middle, sitting on my older sister's lap.


This photo is of my mom and dad when they were dating. Love the sled!


Here is my parents' engagement picture.


This is my mom and dad right after they were married. Love this picture!


My mom and oldest brother Steve looking to see how Santa comes in the house on Christmas Eve.


My brother Steve and sister Nancy with mom. I love the way Steve is looking at her!


Here is the six of us kids on Christmas morning. (I'm in the bottom row all the way to the left.)


This is my mom all dressed up for my brother Mike's Groom's Dinner.


I love this picture of my mom and dad!


I don't know why I like this picture, but I just think she looks so cute here.


This photo was taken in Arizona. My mom and dad took my sister Nancy there to look at colleges.


And here is a more recent one of my mom with my brothers Steve, on the left and Mike on the right.


What a gift this book is to me! It's filled with many, many more pictures of all six kids and mom and dad. Too many to show. I will treasure it always!

I am trying hard to live the way my mom would want me to live.....with a positive, happy, optimistic attitude and a love for life. I find myself getting sad at times of course. The other day something really fun happened and for a split second I thought, "I have to call mom and tell her!" Then it hit me again. I know the pain of missing her will ease with time.

Thank you, Mom, for loving me the way you did. For being the kind of mother any child would be lucky to have. For teaching me a wonderful way to live my life. I miss you and love you so much!