nurturing Thursdays: early wishes for…

Posted on May 12, 2016 by hugmamma

…a very blessed Father’s Day!

You must be checking your calendar to see when it is. Don’t worry. I’m a month early. Because my daughter’s wedding will be front and center soon, I wanted to give my husband his due before all the hoopla surrounding her day overshadows everything else.

As devoted as I am to my daughter, I continue to be amazed at my husband’s unconditional love and loyal support. He is selfless when it comes to providing for us. There has never been a time since our daughter was born when he put his needs before ours. I don’t even remember him asking for a single material thing. I’ve always made gift choices which I thought would please him; whether or not there was an occasion to celebrate.

I didn’t know my dad. He died when I was one. Without realizing it, I’m sure I sought surrogates as a child growing up. There were 2 men who resonated as father figures…my best friend’s dad and our family doctor. Their small gestures made me feel that an adult other than my mom cared about my well-being. I understood that they belonged to other children, but when these men spoke to me I basked in the warmth of their attention, however fleeting. How I wished I was their daughter. I would have been proud, and pleased.

My husband has turned out to be just such a dad. He is everything I would have wished for as a child. Thank God I grew up subconsciously knowing the kind of man with whom I wanted to share my life. He also happened to be…

…the perfect father…

…for our precious daughter.

………hugmamma.

More inspirational thoughts at…
https://beccagivens.wordpress.com/2016/05/12/nurt-thurs-move-on/

friday fictioneers: pretty, pretty princess…

Posted on April 17, 2014 by hugmamma

He was a corporate guy in a suit and tie,

but in a pink hat with matching pearls, he was just one of us girls.

By day he managed employees, sat in on meetings, and problem solved.

At night he happily chucked it all to play “Pretty, Pretty Princess.”

A couple of decades later, he’s still commuting for a paycheck.

He’s traded floor fun for quiet, relaxed evenings in a chair, Nook in hand, head nodding.

Memories, always fresh, still linger…of bygone days with his little girl.

All grown up, but still his pretty, pretty princess.

His pumpkin pie. Her pops.

seahawks all the way!!!

Posted on January 20, 2014 by hugmamma

I’m not a foot ball fan, even though I was a high school cheerleader. For me it was more about leading the crowds in cheering our team onto victory. And, of course, there was the especially close proximity to the players. At the time I was dating the captain.

With the Seattle Seahawks winning streak thus far, football has once again propelled itself front and center in our household.

The difference, however, is that our daughter is home to share in the good times with her dad.

When she lived in Atlanta and Tennessee, our daughter joined friends at a few of the local football games.

Having gone to a high school conservatory where she majored in ballet, our daughter didn’t partake of the normal social scene most high schoolers experience. Nonetheless, she took to football like a natural, although hockey is her first love.

As a Christmas gift for her dad, our daughter purchased tickets to the last Seahawk season game. It was a father/daughter day they’ll never forget.

Because I never knew my dad…he died when I was one…I’m 100% behind my husband and my daughter having a great relationship. And because the Seahawks did their part in nurturing that father/daughter bond, I say…Seahawks all the way!

…bring back a superbowl win!!!……..hugmamma.

friday fictioneers: first love…forever love

Posted on December 20, 2013 by hugmamma

A tiny hand tucked securely into a larger one.

Adoring eyes glancing upwards at the love of her life.

Smiling at him as he gazes down at her, eyes wrinkling at the corners.

Fun times together, whether raking autumn leaves or gliding down snowy slopes.

Favorite outings were always visits to aquariums.

Barking seals. Playful penguins. Floating jellyfish. Jumping dolphins.

Dancing seahorses, mini ones clinging to giant kelp in underwater forests.

Hot dogs and cotton candy for two hungry landlubbers.

Weary arms hugging his head as her little body lay draped about his neck.

Pops…and Pumpkin Pie…then, now, and always.

the greatest love…

Posted on May 14, 2013 by hugmamma

If memory serves me correctly, the Bible teaches that…”There is no greater love than that a man lay down his life for another.”

As Father’s Day approaches I can’t help but think of the men who have done just that for their loved ones…lay down their lives…in the process of providing for their families.

Cover of Father’s Day

Women get much of the credit for raising our youngsters to be exemplary human beings. We dote upon them endlessly, instilling them with manners, compassion, self-confidence, skills for success. We are there to transport them…to volunteer on their behalf…to play hostess to their friends…to console or to celebrate, depending upon the circumstances.

Mothering is hard work, for sure. However the rewards we reap are priceless, beginning with…an endless supply of hugs….and “I love you’s.” We don’t have to wait for a special occasion, like Mother’s Day.

My daughter and I begin and end our phone calls with “I love you.” And as though that weren’t enough…we manage to incorporate a few more into our conversation. When I’m searching for something else to say, I fill the void with…”I love you.”

By comparison, fathers often miss the small moments in their children’s lives. They’re on hand for the big occasions…birthdays, graduations, weddings. Fathers are lucky if they make the ball games, the recitals, the swim meets, opening nights. It’s more than likely when their jobs beckon…dads are off and running…whether they like it or not.

As a seasoned travel industry employee my husband hasn’t had the luxury of witnessing the minutiae of our daughter’s life. When she began focusing upon a dance career at age 14, their time together was further impacted.

When our daughter was 16, she and I relocated 3,000 miles from home so that she could train with a professional company. My husband remained behind working to support the venture on top of his other responsibilities.

As you can well imagine, parenting took on a whole, new twist. I was pretty much single-parenting a teenage-wannabe- ballerina in a strange environment…with dad a phone call and a plane ride…away.

I can’t say which of us fared better…or worse. The day my husband flew home after helping my daughter and me settle into our new lives…I shed a few tears. My best friend and soul mate was leaving .

We both had to hold up our end of the deal. Mom had to help make the dance dream come true…dad had to pay for it.

Like all fathers who love their children very much, my husband continues to give as completely of himself as he is physically able. Between his job and his duty to family, there is no gap…no doing just for himself. His love for my daughter and me is…that great.

Since my father died when I was one, I cherish the relationship between my husband and my daughter. She and I agree…her dad’s the best.

…every day’s father’s day…in our home…

………hugmamma.

Kathy Gamble of Algiers celebrates 50 years of teaching ballet (nola.com)

365 photo challenge: touching

Posted on August 8, 2011 by hugmamma

We were out and about yesterday, “making hay while the sun shone,” as the saying goes. Here in the Seattle area we have to take advantage of every sunny day. We don’t get that many. I think our summer season began a few days ago. At a local mall, I stopped to snap this photo. My subjects were a little reluctant…until they saw the finished product. They agreed it was touching, after I told them the story that went along with it.

I remember a doting father who would proudly hoist his precious, little daughter onto his broad shoulders, carrying her everywhere we went. And when we visited the zoo, any zoo, he would eagerly show her the animals pacing back and forth in their habitats…including the long-necked giraffes. With broad smiles and laughing eyes, father and daughter would be lost in a world of their own making…whether gazing at wildlife…or playing “Pretty, Pretty Princess” when dad would dress up in hat, jewelry and purse…or building an igloo in our front yard in frigid, Connecticut temperatures…or swimming like fish in the warm Hawaiian waters during visits with family.

Sitting side-by-side today, painted giraffe looking down…a knowing smile upon its lips, daughter and pops, with their cheshire smiles, still share their own secret world…where mom can only guess what they’re thinking. Are they saying “cheese” for the camera? Or are they agreeing that…mom’s a goofball?

and will i ever know?…or are they too loving…to say?………hugmamma. 😉