Unplanned, But Never a Mistake

Big Attitude in a Small Package

Today I celebrate the 33rd birthday of my firstborn child.  There is really no way to describe a mother's love.  I certainly couldn't understand it until I experienced myself.

I was only 18 when I found myself unexpectedly pregnant.  I was single, barely out of high school, naive and scared to death.  But I already loved the child growing inside me.  Back in the '70s, being unmarried and pregnant was a much bigger scandal than it is now.  But no amount of personal shame would have prevented me from giving birth to this precious gift.

For many years it was just the two of us.  Then I met the man who would become her father.  He loved her immediately, which was fortunate for him because we were a package deal.  Shortly after we were married, he adopted her.  And from that day forward he has never thought of her as anything but his own daughter. 

Over the years we've been through just about anything you can imagine.  We've experienced happiness, sorrow and unbearable pain.  But through it all I've loved my daughter with all my heart.  And I'm proud of the strong young woman she has become.

Some of the best things in life aren't planned.  They come along unexpectedly and give you joy you never thought possible.