Why we can't wait for Aiden to meet you.......GIGI

Well it has been a while since I have featured people on the blog, but now I am going to get back to doing it and the first person I wanted to feature now that we know Aiden's name and that he is a boy....is my mom.

Everyone knows who my mom is so the introduction for this post is unnecessary. My mom is my very best friend in the whole world and I am so excited to see her as a grandmother (gigi) because I know aiden will adore her. She will make him laugh and smile in ways that only grandmothers can and their house (gigi and poppy's) will be the place he goes when ben and I are driving him crazy.

I have way too many favorite memories of my mom. I could tell of her bartering tactics in new york, her impeccable catch phrase skills, the time she came and spent with me in italy, the great holiday traditions of my childhood, the times she would let us play hookey from school and spend the day with her, the countless shopping trips, trips to get our nails/toes done, road trips, running the 10K marathon, skiing and almost losing my eye, camping, planning my wedding, Greece, the list could go on and on. My favorite moments with my mom have been the small moments though, the insignificant moments. The days when we did a whole bunch of nothing together (we have done this a lot). The days where we would watch movies or law and orders in our pajamas and have dad bring us food. She has been a huge part of every major and minor event in my life so it would be hard to categorize which memory meant the most to me. Ben has often said that my childhood sounds like something out of a TV show or old movie. This is 95% the work of my mom. Jarod and I were always put first in her life and she went out of her way to make sure our childhoods were memorable and special.

My mom has been my best friend in the world for the past 6 years. We clashed a lot during high school and it wasn't until I graduated and "started to grow up" that I learned how amazing my mom is. All of the time we have spent together has meant so much to me not just because she is my mom and I began to covet her advice and wisdom but because she is my friend. As I get older and start to think of the type of mother I want to be, I begin to respect my mom more and more. All the things that she put up with from me, all the sacrifices she made, all that she made possible for jarod and I. I only hope I can do that for Aiden. Since I am far away from home it is always my mom I miss first when I am homesick and it is always my mom I want to talk to first when I have a problem, or something exciting happens, or anything. Hers has been the advice I have coveted most in my life and the ear I have leaned to whenever I needed someone to listen to me. Everyone says I am more like dad and that is true but I respect the things that my mom has taught me and the things that I got from her. My mom is such a sweet and compassionate soul. She feels with her heart on all things and I admire that so much. There is absolutely no one else in the world like her.In times of adversity you think she will crack because she is so tender hearted but she fights for those she loves and never gives up. She has taught me how to see with my heart. She has given me grace, and warmth and simple joy. Thanks to my mom I will never lose sight of the truly important things in life. My mom has never given up on me and believed in me when not many other people did. I know I will be a great mom, because I had the greatest mom and her example has given me footsteps to follow, her encouragement has given me wings to fly and her love will be a part of me always and wherever I go. The heart never forgets the things that matter the most so thank you for all the tears you shed for me, all the prayers you pray for me, all the belief you have had in me, and all the moments you have spent with me. I could not ask for a better mother and Aiden could not ask for a better grandmother. We are both truly blessed.