Throughout her children’s lives, a mother hopes…
her baby will be born healthy
the baby will go to sleep
the baby will stop crying
the fever will go down
her doctor is wrong
physical therapy will fix it
she won’t miss her child’s first steps
she can handle two kids under three
she can survive the terrible twos…twice
she can learn patience
her two children love one another
her firstborn knows he isn’t replaced
she can survive the first day of kindergarten…twice
her daughter will try new foods
her son isn’t too old for hugs in second grade
her daughter’s spirit won’t be crushed by mean girls
her kids find themselves a lot quicker and easier than she did
she can handle their disappointments
she can make the pain go away
she doesn’t try to fight their fights for them
the car pulls up in the driveway every night
she can show them how to be the bigger person
a late-night phone call has her child’s voice on the other end and not bad news
she teaches her kids to laugh at themselves
she can send them to college without bawling, even though she’s been crying about it for years
her children find their place in this world
her kids remember everything she taught them
I’m participating in Melanie Crutchfield’s Blog Relay for Hope. Mary at A Teachable Mom handed me the baton. Be sure to check them out.
I’d like to invite Five Uninterrupted Minutes, Ice Scream Mama, Cozzi’s Corner, Welcome to Grace, and Fortyteen Candles to write a post about hope. If you’re interested, just link up to me and the bloggers you plan to recruit.
Melanie Crutchfield will be holding “Closing Ceremonies” around August 10 and will gather up little bits from people who wrote about hope, so link back to her.
Mom in the Muddle 
What a beautiful list!
Thank you!
I love this. It’s beautiful. I may be too snarky to be beautiful… but i can hope.
Other than the fact that I only have one child (if you don’t count Wonderbutt and Mrs. P.I.B.) this list is a perfect representation of every one of my hopes.
I enjoy list poems. This was a good one.
So good…so many lines just hit home with me. Thank you!
Beautifully done!
Perfect! This is one of the most touching posts I’ve read. What mother can’t identify with all these? Isn’t it funny how many of them balance perilously between hope and fear? Have a lovely day.
I knew you’d wow me! A touching representation of a parent’s hope, beautifully expressed. Lovely!
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: kids, they will eff you up. So much love and concern and hope and fear, all tied into tiny little bodies that you have so little control over (even though I like to believe otherwise).
Thank you so much for taking the baton!
Thanks for doing this. It was inspiring, surprising, and fun. I’ve read some great posts from this relay. Loved it.
Thanks for inviting me to write for hope! Loved your post!
What a great list. I can relate to so much of it (pretty much all of it, actually)…and tell me the first day of kindergarten isn’t scary! It’s coming up in a few weeks! Ack
You hit the nail on the head – whether your kids are entering kindergarten or finishing college (like my oldest is this year) the list is really the same for all of us. thank you!
As a mother of two under two (and one on the way) I completely agree and I love your list!
Amazing how many on your list speak directly to me. Beautiful post.
Pingback: Hope 2012: Closing Ceremonies « Melanie Crutchfield
You have captured a mother’s wishes beautifully in this post, It is always nice to find someone else who thinks about the same things as you. Thanks for the connection. I have nominated you for an award, you can collect it here
https://innerangelsandenemies.wordpress.com/2012/08/13/another-award-oh-my/
Blessings to you!
Thank you! You are too kind. Checking it out now. On Aug 14, 2012,
I really enjoy your blog, and as a token of my appreciation for what you do I have nominated you for the One Lovely Blog Award
http://fourdoodlesandataco.com/2012/08/15/awwww-im-so-chuffed-one-lovely-blog-award/
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you like it. And thanks for the award!
Wow I love this… and its so true.. to learn patience
Thank you. Patience, a work in progress. 😉
It sure is…
http://neobabychild.wordpress.com/