Yesterday was Casie's 23rd birthday. I can't believe my firstborn is 23 years old. It seems like just yesterday she was snuggling in my lap. One of my favorite memories is how she would cuddle in my lap when she was a toddler and preschooler and hug my neck and say "Oh how I love that Mommy smell!" My heart would just melt.So she's older now, and she is cuddling with the purse of her dreams and probably saying "Oh how I love that new purse smell!" But that's okay...because, I, the mommy, found it for her! :)
Seriously, I am honored to be her mother. She was a beautiful baby and has grown into a beautiful woman. And I'm not even talking about the outward appearance, although she truly is beautiful outwardly. I'm talking about something more important...her soul. She is a beautiful soul. She is a young woman who lives out the fruits of the Spirit....love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
My own mother and I are very close...and I considered myself close to all my grandmothers and great grandmother. I'm blessed to still have one remaining grandmother as a matter of fact, and I treasure her. So, I always felt loved and nurtured by the women in my family. And yet, until I held Casie in my arms for the first time, I never knew the intensity of the love between mother and child. And Casie won't get it until she is blessed to have her own child.
I'm glad that we had a good celebration yesterday. Her dad even came over and took us all to lunch to celebrate her special day, and we all four had a lovely afternoon together. We ate her favorite cheesecake from the Cheesecake Corner in Memphis, and we played a boardgame together, all four of us laughing quite a bit. Although life's changes aren't always good, I'm glad for the bond of children, and how the celebration of life can bring people together for awhile. She hugged me and said her birthday was a great one, and those words have made my heart melt all over again.
