Redheaded Jill

As I’ve said before, I come from a large family. Sharing attention with six brothers and sisters wasn’t always a treat. Thankfully, my parents were good about making me feel seen. And I have 100 good memories for every one not so good one.

My mom always did fun things for us growing up. In elementary school she hand sewed Halloween treat bags for my class two or three years. And not just simple square bags. One year she did pumpkins and one year she did bats. I can still see them in my mind’s eye. And she filled them with treats.

When I turned 12 she took me and my best friend and another girl to the mall to eat at Johnny Rockets. (It was a 50s diner style restaurant.) Then she took us to build a bear and she made us little goody bags full of things pre-teens love like lip gloss and gel pens.

In junior high and high school she would let me skip school sometimes to do something fun, like go shopping. My friends are still jealous of that one 15 years later. She never hesitated to call in to the school when I was running late, especially my senior year. One time I told her, “I really don’t want to go to school today…” and she said, “OK.” And that was that.

I had braces from 2nd grade to 8th grade and I haaaaaated it. She would usually let me pick after an appointment. I could go to this shop next to the orthodontist called The Palace and pick out a new Beanie Baby, or I could opt for a dairy queen blizzard. I had quite the beanie baby collection…

In high school she drove with me to Tennessee for a college tour. At first my friends were going to come with me, but their parents said no to us driving 10 hours from home alone at 16… So my mom took me. It was super fun.

One time I told my mom I wanted to do something, so we had a girl’s weekend in Branson. My two sisters and mom and I went to Branson and just stayed for a couple nights. We did some shopping… found a parking lot with a giant Abe Lincoln head in it and took some pictures…

Most recently I was telling my mom about my plans to visit Wyoming. I was planning to sleep in my car to save money (but I didn’t tell her that). She knows how little money I have so she offered to come with me. It was an amazing trip, just me and my youngest sister and my mom. We thrifted. We saw some sights. We ate good food. Thanks to her generosity I slept in actual beds and ate actual food instead of sleeping in my car and surviving on granola bars and Taco Bell.

My mom always helped me when I was overwhelmed as Grandma’s caretaker. She found my therapist and scheduled my first appointment. She always encourages my dreams and business plans. She has helped me start an ebay store and takes an interest in my etsy stores and other creative outlets. When I tell her an idea she acts excited and encourages me to give it a try.

I really love and appreciate my mom.