My Ande!

Birthday, Kids, Love 11 Comments

 

 

 

My little girl turned 15 last month. I love my daughter Ande. She is my life and joy! I know I make fun of her because of her “blond moments” but it’s all out of love. (Ande… you know I love you!)

 

I love that Ande and I often do things together, although not as much as we used to. I remember Ande’s favorite restaurant (before she found out about chicken wings) was Ed Debevics. We would have a mother daughter day and go eat at Ed Debevis frequently until they closed the place down.

I know teenagers can be problems at times, yes that includes Ande as well. But for the most part, she is an amazing teenage daughter. She does get upset with me at times, but I find it rather interesting that even though she is angry with me or hates me, she still wants to be around me. Hmm… could it be LOVE and not hatred? I love that after we get in arguments or discussions, Ande will come to me later in the day or the next day and give me hug or do some type of gesture so that I know that she still loves me. I love that Ande sometimes writes me notes (yea, most of the time it’s because it’s a holiday, but at times it’s because she loves me.)

I love the poem that Ande gave me for my birthday. She taped it on my wall next to a banner that said Happy Birthday Mom!. The poem says….

TO MOM FROM HER PESKY KID
I really love my mother,
and it surely makes me proud,
to know I’m one of her pesky kids,
and to sing her praises loud.
My mother has a birthday,
almost every year.
and on that day she’ll ponder life,
and even shed a tear.
See, ma don’t like her birthdays;
she says they make her old,
but she’s as sharp as she ever was,
if the truth be told.
My mother showed me lots of things,
about the world, you see,
so then I could teach my pesky kids,
the things my mom taught me.
Thank goodness for you, mom. where would I be with out you?
I remember when I read that poem it brought tears to my eyes. I honestly don’t think it was so much because of what it said, but mainly because the day before my birthday Ande and I got into a big argument. Even though she was upset with me, she still gave me this poem. WOW! I love that about her.

I love that Ande has told me that she understands why I don’t allow her to do things and that she understands why I worry about her and why I do things in certain ways. Don’t get me wrong, even though she has told me that on several occasions, she still makes it clear that she doesn’t like my decisions at times but she still says that she understands why I make certain decisions.
 
I love that Ande would rather spend her time listening to GOOD clean music, singing songs, playing with her little sister and surround herself by good friends. I am VERY grateful that she has her free agency and uses it to choose the right. I am not saying that she is the most perfect kid because we have all made our mistakes. I love that Ande would rather TP Bishops home instead of going to a party with friends! I love that Ande would rather play wii at her bishops home instead of going to a HS football game.
On several occasions, Ande has chosen not to do certain things even after she had permission because she has heard that small voice inside all of us telling her something bad would happen if she went somewhere or made a certain decision. I absolutely love that Ande is in tune with the spirit to know what those feelings are.
I love that Ande helps me immensely with Jessica. She has been a great role model and amazing sister to Jessica. I love that Ande treats her like her own child. Ande actually gave Jessica her first feeding right after Jessie was born.
I love that Ande picked the name Jessica for her sister. Ande said that she chose Jes sica because we could call her Jessie so that both of them have boy nicknames. ha


I love that Ande has an incredible voice and that she is a wonderful singer. I love that Ande has the confidence in her talents that I never did. I love that Ande knows that she may fail at times but still chooses to try and not sit back and say, “Why try, I may not make it anyhow”. I love that she did not take after me in that aspect because I was and still am afraid of failure. I love that Ande is a strong young woman and confident in herself.

I love that Ande has an amazing sense of humor. I love that she is beautiful both inside and out. I love that Ande can brighten up a room when she walks in. I love that Ande looks up to me. Ande has been and I know will continue to be a wonderful role model mainly to her little sister as well as her friends, cousins and those that have any contact with her.

 

I love that Ande cares and worries about others. I love that Ande thinks of others before herself. I love that Ande is carrying and extremely giving. I love that Ande has an enormous heart!  
I love that when Ande was younger and had to do the visitation with her biological father, she would constantly tell me that she’d look at the stars and think of me or that she would sing the song from Tarzan “You’ll be in heart” because it reminded her of me and that was what made her feel safe. I love that during that time, she found peace in knowing that one day she would never have to deal with them again (long story short – Ande had an “angel’ visit her to tell her exactly when the last time would be that she would have to suffer and do visitations. Turns out that the “angel” she saw was my mom’s mom who died when my mom was 15.) I love that Ande has always been understanding on important issues. For instance, after Ande had to suffer all the abuse (another LONG story) she told me, as a 2nd grader, that she knows all of it had to happen for her to never see “them” again. WOW! What an amazing and strong little girl she was. She even tried to console me telling me that everything would be okay because she was with me. She is my rock!

Have I mentioned that I absolutely love my Ande? I love that Ande has brought me so much joy! I remember I used to read the book I’ll Love You Forever to her every night. It became one of our favorites.

I’ll Love You Forever,
I’ll Like You For Always,
As Long As I’m Living,
My Baby You’ll Be!
One last thing.. I love that Ande isn’t old enough to drive or date! Gosh I dread that day. ha ha

I LOVE YOU ANDE!!!
“A daughter is the happy memories of the past, the joyful moments of the present, and the hope and promise of the future”