A few months after finding out I was pregnant with Mana, I had read that I should "talk to her", so she'd recognize my voice and yada, yada, yada... Well, I tried it a couple of times, but talking to my growing belly seemed a little odd. Early on, my main goal for my child was to raise her to love the Lord our God with all her heart, spirit, soul, and mind. I wanted to tell her about God before she was even born. One day, an idea popped into my mind, so I ran with it. I grabbed my tape recorder, pressed record and told her how much I loved her. I also recorded myself reading the bible to her. The tape was several hours long. As I would go about my day, cooking, cleaning, doing college homework, etc... I would fastened the little walk-man to my pants and press the earphones to my stomach. I just wanted her to be brought into this world knowing, in her spirit, how much she was already loved by me and by God.
Thirteen years later...Maddie is a happy, healthy, truly remarkable child who loves God with all her heart. There are so many wonderful words to describe her, but there's one that really sticks out in my mind, "Leader." She realizes her witness is her life, and tries to be a good example for others. I've learned so many things from her. She has way more common sense than I've ever thought about having! She is easy-going and an absolute delight to be around. She loves animals (a trait that was not passed down from her mom) with a passion. She's an excellent horse rider and even trained her horse all by herself! She loves the outdoors and is a hard-worker and a great athlete. When she sets her mind to do something, she doesn't give up! I love the fact that she will try anything, at least once. She's also a peacemaker. There have been so many times when she's given up what she wants, so somebody else in her family could benefit.
I love the way she tells me what's going on in her life without me having to ask. I pray this will continue throughout her teenage years. I also pray that God will continue to bless her life and give her favor with Him and others.
Yes, I am her mom, and I'm a little biased, but it's my job to brag. Although, I've noticed that lots of other people feel the same way about her, as well. She was awarded "Scholar of the Month," at her school, in October. Here's what her 6th grade teachers had to say about her (quote from newspaper): "She is always attentive in her work and has above a 95 average in all her classes,"they said when nominating her. In addition, the teachers can depend on her to be responsible, attentive, and cooperative. We also love the fact that she has a pleasant personality and is very helpful." They also said, "She is truly a joy to have as a student and will continue to be a remarkable asset to our school."
I will be writing blogs about people in my family when they celebrate a birthday, so they'll know how much they mean to me.
Yesterday, my mom, the girls, and I went to Mana's favorite place. We went to the best swimming hole in Texas, which is the Frio River in ConCan. We had so much fun. It was a perfect day. Later, we had a late supper at my mom and dad's. We ate her favorite meal, enchiladas! This was part one of her 13th birthday. Today, she is celebrating with her other grandmother, Gigi. They went shopping. In a week, we'll be taking Mana, her sisters, and four of her friends to Schlitterbauhn (the biggest waterpark in Texas) to continue her celebration. She deserves it for being such a good kid! I love you, Mana...
**Pic on the left: Mana's 1st trip to Concan. (1 year old)
**Pic on the right: Mana, her sisters, and I celebrating her 13th. (12 years later)
**As most of you know, Mana is her nickname, given to her by her dad. She has such a long, beautiful name, but some people have freaked me out about posting my kids' names on the web (so I'll stick with their nicknames).
AWWWW. That was so sweet! Each of us who know her are blessed in some way by her life. I have loved watching her grow up to the point, and I can't wait to see the ways God continues to use her.
ReplyDeleteTia would have to agree fully with everything written about Mana in this post!! Oh what a joy she is to have in our family. She is just as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside.
ReplyDeleteAs a side note...I will NEVER forget her birth 13 years ago!! (only because I though her mother was dying! ha! I could elaborate but I won't! :)
What a blessing to know all of you.
ReplyDeleteI can still rember "having it all's" excitment when she found you on her way to collage...and the rest is history.
What a sweet tribute to a sweet girl.