Today is my thirty first birthday and it has me thinking about my life. If you’d asked me ten years ago where I’d be today, I’d never have guessed I’d be living in small town southern America. I had big dreams; I wanted to tour the world singing, visit Paris, and end up living in New York or somewhere big and glamorous. You are probably wondering, what happened?

I became a Mother and my life changed. The things that once seemed important no longer seemed important anymore. I suddenly didn’t dream of visiting Paris, seeing Disney World through my child’s eyes sounds much more exciting than Paris at the moment.

You know, my life might not be perfect and it’s not like anything that I ever dreamed my life would become. I have made mistakes and there is a lot of grief and loss in my life, but overall when I look at my life as a whole, I feel like I’m pretty blessed.

I have two adorable boys who I love more than life. I’d do anything for either one of those boys. Yes, one has special needs and life as his parent might not be quite like what I imagined it would be, but he’s happy and healthy and thriving and that’s what is most important as far as I’m concerned.

And, yes, I don’t parent my other son but I do see him and have a relationship with him and his parents. I know that in this aspect of adoption, as much as I hate it when other people tell me how lucky I am regarding this, I am lucky. Unfortunately, not every other birthmother’s children have adoptive parents as open and willing to allow me to be such a big part of their families as Charlie’s adoptive parents are.

So, today as I reflect on my life, I’m focusing on what I have and not what I’ve lost.


And for the record, I did have a great birthday! I opted for strawberry shortcake this year (the dessert not the cartoon character) in lieu of a traditional birthday cake and I got two purses to feed my handbag addiction!


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Nostalgia
My Thoughts on Motherhood
Being Charlie's "Burp Mom"

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