Happy Birthday, Mom!

That’s right, folks, my dear mother is celebrating her big day today! Terry and I live in LA, and my parents live in Fremont (in the Bay Area, near San Jose), so we rarely get to see my mom on her birthday. In fact, the last time was five years ago. Still, I did get to see her fairly recently when she came to visit and will see them again in less than a month – in Hawaii! The whole family (my parents, Terry and I, and my brother and his fiancée) is heading to Maui for a few days next month, and we are stoked for some fun in the sun! Meanwhile, I’ll share a bit about my mom in honor of her special day. 

Getting ready for my wedding

Now that I’m older, I realize and appreciate how wonderful my mom is and how much she has done for our family. Until recently, when she retired, my mom worked as a police dispatcher and communications manager. She worked full time throughout her career, but I know she took some time off when both my brother and I were born, and I also remember a few summers when she took several weeks off to spend time with us kids.

Mom's favorite: Choosing super tall Christmas trees 

My parents felt it was important for us to travel often, a value that obviously still resonates with me. Before I turned 18, I had traveled with my family to several East Coast states, the Pacific Northwest (road trip!), most of California’s hot spots, Florida (including Disneyworld – a kid’s dream trip), Hawaii, Cancun, and Canada. We also took several cruises and got to experience a wealth of Caribbean islands. I am so grateful for these vacations and know how difficult they were to plan and how hard my parents had to work to make them happen. I look forward to making sure my future children get to see a lot of the world, too.

Playing tourists in San Francisco

My mom was also my first model of good health. She cooks delicious meals every night; we almost never ate out when we were growing up. In her own eating habits, Mom demonstrates self control and emphasizes tons of vegetables in her diet (alas, she's also where I got my sweet tooth). On top of that, she woke up at 4:30 every morning to squeeze in her workout before work. I seriously admire anyone who works out before work; anytime I try to wake up at 5, I zonk back out and curl up for another 45 minutes. Not only did she get up to work out; she owned  the gym. She still kicks my butt at cardio workouts (though I may or may not have her beat when we do yoga). 

My bridal shower

We’ve always been a close family, but my mom and I grew especially close over these last few years as Terry and I planned our wedding and settled in to married life. She has shown nothing but support, excitement, and genuine enthusiasm for our future, and I cannot say how much it means to us to have her and my dad cheering us on. I still call my mom first when I have a cooking question, and I am always excited to share my latest workouts with her. Mom also got us into wine tasting, something we now love and share with the rest of my family as often as possible. She also is one of my most loyal readers! 

I feel so lucky to have been blessed with such a wonderful mother. I hope I'll get a chance to be a mother, and I know I'll turn to my mom every step of the way for advice. Thanks for everything, Mom, and happy birthday! Love you!