My Mom, and a Color Challenge

Alright friends - Dawn has posted another color challenge on her blog. YUM-O look at those colors. They're just fab! I couldn't figure out what I was going to do...so I searched through all my stuff and found this great butterfly image... and I got to work.

















Everyone always thinks their Mom is the best. And everyone is right. No matter what age you are, alright, maybe teenage years excluded, but the relationship between Mother and child is like no other...only because I have now seen it myself.

Growing up, I was very attached to my Mom, incredibly shy, always hiding behind her when meeting someone new. She encouraged me to break free a bit, and be my own person. I was pretty lucky, I'm the baby of the family...but not only just the baby, there's a 5 year age difference between me and my brother, so when I was born, he was going off to Kindergarten, and I had Mom all to myself. Lots of good times there.

I'm a snuggler, always was, always will be...Mom never turned down a snuggle. She takes a good teasing too, as kids, we had an Atari 2600, and Mom would play Pitfall...and she really got into it...let's just say, she's great with the Wii ;). Growing older, I became a fresh mouthed teenager, and took Mom for granted...just as I think many teenagers do. Mom was no longer cool...I had a gaggle of friends I hung out with, and certainly wasn't hiding behind her leg anymore, but somehow I knew that no matter what, she'd be there for me.

I started dating my first real, official, boyfriend...she didn't make a big deal (she left that to my Dad) but I knew she was watching. She has a good eye for great guys...I would have known if she didn't like him, but she wouldn't push - she's too smart to do that. She didn't though - so I knew he was a keeper (he must be, I'll be married to him for 10 years in October!). Anyway...that freshness started to subside, and I started looking at my Mom in a completely different way. She was the one and only person in this world that would love me more that I could ever imagine...unconditionally. I feel that same way about her. There's NO ONE like Mom.

My Dad got real sick in 2001, and was hospitalized for months, has brain damage, and short term memory loss. Many people admit they would have ran for the hills, not Mom. She put up with the attitudes, the frustration, the anger, and worked with my Dad until he was able to come home. It's not been an easy road, and she is AMAZING to do what she has to do on a daily basis. There aren't many women like her, and I hope that I'm HALF of what she is. I thank her for always leading the way, without me even knowing, and for the love and understanding she shows to me. For still loving my father, even when he is downright nasty, because he is feeling sorry for himself. She shows me how to be a better person. So Mom - I love you - more than you'll ever know.

This will be her Mother's day card (so I'm hoping she doesn't read my blog!! :) )

The Butterfly image is from Outlines Rubber Stamps, I've had it for almost a year before it saw ink, crazy right? I also went back to watercoloring...gasp! I didn't even TOUCH my Copics :). Added lots of pearls and bling to this beauty, but to me it still classy, not overdone.

The 'Mother' is from Papertrey Ink's Mother set. It's got some GREAT sentiments, like the one stamped inside... "Someone who can take the place of all others, but no one can take their place" Perfect.

Thanks for stopping by today - hope you start off your week with a smile!

Supplies:
Stamps: Mother (Papertrey Ink), Butterfly (Outlines Rubber Stamps)
Ink: Memento Brown, PTI Dark Chocolate
Paper: Spring Moss, SEI Black Orchid designer paper
Accessories: Kaiser pearls, K&Co jewels, PTI Dark Chocolate Ribbon, PTI Vintage buttons