As the kids grow up and leave home I'm excited for them and a little sad at the same time. I love the noise and fast pace of having lots of children in our home. The surprises, the laughter and the rare moments when everything seems just right. As each one leaves we miss them and feel a small emptiness. As a step mom I believe my role is to step in when needed and back out when not needed and the children make that call. At the same time - I am the mom of my home and I have to make sure it is a home that is comfortable and secure for everyone. It's a balancing act that is hard to achieve with the different children and personality's. As each child gets ready to leave home I wonder if I have been successful or not in maintaining a home that is comfortable. As another starts preparing to start out on her own, here are few things I remember:
"I can pick you up" - The first time I ate dinner with Eric and his children in their home that is one of the first things Leisel said to me. She was tiny and she just picked me up. To this day I have to ask her to open jars for me.
On one of our first road trips I did not check suitcases, but I did give the kids lists so they knew exactly what to pack. It was two days into the trip when Eric and I noticed Leisel still wearing the same clothes. A quick search of her suitcase revealed she had packed her stuffed animals and nothing more. We had to make a trip to Wal-Mart.
One holiday after a visit to an Aunt & Uncle, Leisel started crying her heart out on the drive home. It was a long drive home and nothing seemed to consul her. Suddenly it became quiet and she said "I just lost my tooth". It was so funny we laughed the rest of the way home.
Scuba Diving - On one family trip the girls went scuba diving and the boys deep sea fishing. After the class only Liesel and Megan decided to actually dive. I stood on the beach watching where they went down then crossed my fingers and toes and started praying they would come back safe. I was so relieved to see Leisel's little head pop back out of the water - she couldn't see well without her glasses and decided not to finish the dive. But I was very proud of her for trying.
Babies love her - She can put any baby to sleep to in 15 minutes flat. She was very helpful when my son was small.
The Stanley Hotel - We spent the night in the Stanley Hotel and it was rather creepy. While the boys were out fishing the girls decided to stay in and watch a little TV. I checked both doors to room - or I thought I did. Suddenly our door creeeeeeaaaaaked just like they do in scary movies. Leisel screamed loudly and jumped on me. She was hugging me so tight I couldn't get up to close the door. We all started laughing.
What I hope she remembers is that our family would not have been the same without her terrific smile and great sense of humor. There will always be a spot for her at home.
3 comments:
What a nice tribute to her.
thanks for all the wonderful things you said.i know we have are hard times and im sorry for everything iv done or said.i guess its just still very hard for me not having my parents together.it will always be the biggest challenge that i will have to go through.reading this i realize my family will never be the great family it was before and thats ok with me because my family grew by three and i wouldnt want it anyother way.my family that i have now is AMAZING.thanks for all that you do for me but mostly for making my dad the happiest and luckiest guy there is.
Thanks Leisel. I know things have been tough.
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