What we get from our parents, and what we give to our children.

When a new baby arrives, we always ask “Is she healthy?‘ It’s quickly followed by “How is mom doing?“  And once we know everyone is healthy, safe and happy….it starts.  Everyone looks down at that precious little face and starts trying to figure out what features a baby only two hours old has inherited from parents, grandparents, and even great grandparents.  That’s all fine and good.  Who doesn’t want to see a bit of themselves in a brand new life?  It’s a blessing.

I love when you get together with family, and you can see all the features, traits and mannerisms that you share with them.  Those traits get passed down from generation to generation, and it really makes me think….what am I passing down to Caroline?  I spent last weekend with family, and it’s plain to see what I inherited from my father.  The gift of gab.  My father can talk, and talk, and talk.  He can talk to anyone, anywhere about anything.  It really is an excellent talent of his.  My mom is the complete opposite.  It takes a lot to get her to open up, so I can see how they’ve maintained a marriage for 40 plus years.  :)  My parents are wonderful.  I love that my dad is a talker, and that I get my chattiness from him.  It’s certainly helped me in my career.  You’ve got to really talk with people in order to interview them for stories, so that’s a big plus.  My mom has a huge heart and is quite sensitive.  And I cry so easily…the little things can break my heart, just like her. 

So, when it comes to my daughter, I often look into her big, blue eyes and wonder what she will inherit from her father, grandparents, and me.  It certainly makes me think about the person that I am and the person I want to be.  Just like the movie “Saving Private Ryan” makes me want to be a better American, looking into my daughter’s eyes makes me want to be a better mother…and a better person.  She picks things up so quickly.  I’m convinced she’s brilliant, but what mom doesn’t think that?  I want her to be compassionate, so that means I need to teach her compassion in my actions, everyday.  I want her to be brave, so I need to exhibit bravery in everything I do.  I want her to grow into a confident woman, so I need to be the one to step forward and be an example of confidence for her.  If there is one thing I want my daughter to know, it’s that her life is priceless.  I want her to live her life to the fullest…shoot for the stars….live out her dreams…and have absolutely no regrets.  I know I don’t want to look back on my life and regret not taking a risk.  I don’t want her to do that either.  I need to be the role model she deserves, and that’s the most important job I have right now.

Ok—so what do you guys see in your children?  Any traits you’d like to share?  How has having children made you a better person or role model?  I’d love to hear what you have to say.

Have a great day!
Ellie

Ok, that blog post totally brought tears to my eyes and now that I am done crying and wiping tears from my eyes I will kindly respond : )

I enjoyed hearing more about your family and must admit that the roles in my family are reversed.  My Mom is the one that gabs all the time and my Dad is the one that is quiet and reserved.  My Mom and I act like a bunch of clowns and my Dad sometimes barely cracks a smile.  My sister gets her personality from him and I get my personality from my Mom.  I do get other great traits from my Dad so things are evenly divided…my Dad has always been a very wise person and he has always taught me to be wise and be sure to always weigh the pros v.s. the cons and that has really helped me through the years.  All in all I think I am a great mix of both of my parents.

I look at Cameron everyday and see how he matures and grows and I see a little bit of both of us in him.  Cameron is a very strong little boy… I went through alot to conceive him and went through alot to maintain a healthy pregnancy and to this day I think he is very strong like his Mommy.  He has great determination like me too.  I want him to know that he should never give up on following his dreams!  I see compassion in him every single day, a couple times a day and he receives that from both me and my husband.  He definitely gets his jovial personality from both of us, but I would tend to say more from my side of the family.

Like you said in your journal post - Caroline’s life is priceless and I would have to agree.  You can’t put a price tag on your child… every child is unique and special and for that I am so thankful.  If you sit back and think about where we all came from then you can see what an amazing job God did creating each and everyone of us.  He put every little piece of the puzzle together to form every single human being.  I thank God daily for blessing me with Cameron.  Cameron has taught me to never give up on my dreams… if I would have chose to give up on my dreams then I would have never been blessed with him so, I see how important that is everyday when I look at him.  He has taught be to be a better person, continue to be a better mother and most importantly to love unconditionally.  I am TOTALLY blessed that I am a Mother, a Daughter, a Wife and a Friend and I thank my Dear Lord everyday for this opportunity.

Ahh..that brought tears to my eyes as well.

Im just a nanny. I dont have kids yet. But wanted to share with you all something.
My dad has Alzheimers. He’s been sick for about 10 years now.  I think about all those little things that I should have asked and didnt. What did you think the first time you saw me? How do I remind you of your parents? Those little things that you wished you had put in a journal for your child when they come along…So I guess my point to this is that you parents should try to keep a little journal. All those little things, maybe it was their smile that reminded you of your mom or dad..or something they did.
It will be truly something down the road that they will cherish forever.