3/4/07

My Mom

My Mom's name is Bonita Sue. When Grandma named her, she wanted to call her Bunny Sue. It never panned out. My Uncle Greg had trouble pronouncing Bonita and just called her Sis. It stuck and that is how everyone knows her- Sis, Aunt Sis and Grandma Sis (or Nama Sis).

She grew up with an older brother, a younger brother and a younger sister in rural Ohio. She was a tomboy for the most part always following her older brother around. Once, when they were teens, he was teasing her about her baton twirling and she threw her baton at him. He shut the door just in time and now there is a big patch in the bedroom door at Grandma's house from it.

She had me when she was 18 and by the time she was 23, she had 3 more (not as cute as me, but she kept them anyways *wink*).

Mom stayed home with us while Dad worked. I remember her being at every school class party and on every field trip. My favorite memories are still eating lunch at the zoo with her on a field trip. We sat on a little dock on a pond with ducks swimming by. I remember being so jazzed that she packed Ho Ho's. I also remember her coming in to school to help when we made valentines in first grade with envelope glue made out of jell-o and the time we wrote and bound our own books.

She saw us through at least 8 moves (two half way across the country), the death of her Dad and two months later, the death of our Dad in a car accident. He died a few days before her 31st birthday and we were just about to buy a house in Illinois. She made it through 2 sets of calling hours in Missouri, 2 sets in Ohio and the burial. Throw in another trip back to MO to sell most of Dad's belongings and pack everything up to move us back to Ohio. Our ages ranged from 12 to 7 at the time- I have no idea how she did it.

After that, she got a job where she could work from home just so she would be able to be there for us. She was, too. She I don't think she ever missed a volleyball game, cheer leading competition, softball game, play, musical or concert.

She got remarried to a great guy (that she had known from years before) a few years later and me and my sisters got to be her bridesmaids. She survived 4 girls going through the teenage years at once. How she did it without the aide of alcohol or strong sedatives, I will never know. :o)

One thing about Mom is that she is easy to tease. She takes teasing well- thank goodness because that's all she and my DH do is tease each other. She is only 5' 3/4", so she gets a lot of short jokes. My sisters and I always tease her about the way she pronounces names wrong. If someone's name is Brent, she will call them Brett. If someone has a strange last name, she will never, ever say it right. We correct her and she just blows it off and says, "Oh, whatever."

I don't think Mom has ever had a day in her life without kids around. She watched her brother and sister while her Mom worked, she babysat her cousins through high school, she had me at 18 and before my youngest sister was out of high school, my other sister and I had kids. I know she had thought about taking in foster kids after we were all out of the house, but now she babysits 3 of her 7 grand kids every day. She wouldn't have it any other way.

2 comments:

Trixie Twatwaffle said...

That is beautiful!!!

Samantha said...

What a wonderful woman! Hearing about her reminds me of my Mama (Grandma). She did all those things for me when my mom couldnt and didnt want to. Thanks for sharing that wonderful story.