Saturday, February 12, 2011

The Friendship of Daughters


A daughter is the happy memories of the past, the joyful moments of the present, and the hope and promise of the future. 
                                                                  ~Author Unknown




I have three daughters -- Emily still lives in my home, Melanie lives in her own home about five minutes from ours, and Sarah lives in our Heavenly Father's home in Heaven.  They are all equally loved and precious to me. 

I enjoyed each step of parenting my daughters.  When they were babies, I loved that stage best.  When they started walking, that was the age I loved best.  Preschool, gradeschool and tween years -- all my favorite.  And although many told me, "Just wait until they hit their teens," sorry, I love their teenage years, too. 

Photo by Emily

As Melanie, and now Emily, emerged from teens, an exciting thing happened -- we became best friends.  With Melanie we were looking towards graduation, celebrating an engagement and planning a wedding.  Such good memories.  Now again, we are looking towards graduation with Emily, planning on watching her leave home for the university and whatever God has for her in this next step of life.  And again I'm thinking, this is the age I like best (except for the leaving home bit).


I've spent the best week with Melanie.  I sent her off for naps often, but we had lots of time to sit and talk, cherish her new son and plan fun projects.  My firstborn, the daughter we waited nine years for, is my dear friend.

Emily was in Cincinnati for volleyball tournament this weekend.  I waited for her voice, enjoyed our volleying texting and waited for her to come home.  I loved her, "We woooooooooooooooooooooon!" text and excited chatter when she came home at 3 in the morning and again when she surfaced after a short night's rest.  She's the daughter I wished for after Sarah's death.  Six years, one tubal pregnancy, and many tears.  She is my dear friend.

My mother and Emily
It makes me understand my own mother's delight at visiting my home.  We reminisce, shop, eat and have mother-daughter talks over white chocolate mochas.  We craft, share our passion for shetering others and she listens to all my dreams.  My mother is also my dear friend.

It must be that this is the relationship God intended mothers and daughters to have.  Somehow in teaching your daughter to be a woman, to place her relationship with God above all others and to treasure friends and family, you grow into an inseparable friendship. 

With Melanie this is taken a step further as I delight in her role of Mother.  I giggle when she sends a child to their room to find a happy face, delight in the craft and play time she plans for her children, and find joy in browsing the stack of parenting and marriage books she's reading -- striving to do the best in the career she has chosen.

Like Deanna Beisser said, "A daughter is a miracle that never ceases to be miraculous...full of beauty and forever beautiful...loving and caring and truly amazing."  And I'm so thankful for mine. 

* * * * *

Celebrate Daughter Love with a Tussie Mussie

I started this Tussie Mussie last night and without thinking of the colors, they ended up the colors of Emily's room.  It was hanging on her dresser drawer pull when she came home.  Of course at three in the morning she wasn't looking around so she didn't find it until later today.

I found this pattern in the 2001 Better Homes and Garden's Celebrate the Season.  It's so easy.  You need a styrofoam cone, 2-inch-wide wire edged ribbon and corsage pins.  Here are the easy steps:

Cover the cone with folds of ribbon, securing it with the pins at random intervals.  Tie four bows and pin around top edge of cone.

Poke silk flowers in the top.  You can also put a florist vial in the top and fill with fresh flowers.  I wasn't happy with my silk flower look so I made 3 large pink ribbon roses and filled in with smaller white ones.  I'm sorry I can't tell you how I did it -- just took some ribbon and twisted and it became a rose.  If you know anything about the meaning of flowers you will know that pink roses celebrate friendship -- and so I celebrate -- I celebrate the friendship of my daughter.

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17 comments:

Trisha said...

Simply beautiful. My mom is my best friend and I hope that someday I will have a daughter that becomes my best friend too. It's such an amazing relationship!

~Trisha

Mindy said...

What a beautiful tribute! I'm always so blessed to read about the close relationship you have with your girls. You are a wonderful example.

Holly said...

This is my favorite post yet. My mom is also my best friend. Many don't understand our relationship but it is one I treasure! Now that God has blessed me with a daughter of my own, I pray that we too will share the same relationship. Thanks for this wonderful post!

Melanie C. said...

Mom, as I told you yesterday, it was a blessing to have you help me this week. You were wonderful, cheerful help. Our 'the kids are asleep' quiet chat was such fun and our craft time together with the kids will always be a delightful memory to me. I love you and am grateful for the love of a mother - your love. Thank you!

Bethe77 said...

I stumbled upon you through a blog hop soemthing on Sunday or soemthing to that effect. WOW! What a beautiful tribute to your daughters. I have three as well that dont live near me at all. I miss them dearly and the friendship that I long for with them. They have all blessed me with grandchildren whom I so wish to cuddle. You are truly a blessed woman of God! Blessings

Clint said...

Beautiful sentiments. Thank you. We also have three daughters, and of course, they are so very special. God bless.

Debra Gray-Elliott said...

I love your blog. I am now following from Say Hi Sunday {No Rules Blog Hop}.

You can follow me @
http://establishingchristianparenting.blogspot.com/

Blessings,
Debra

Sandy Carrel said...

Simply beautiful Pam!!!! I wish my Mother & I would have had more opportunities to spend together over the years. A mother & daughter's love is precious!

Esther Asbury said...

This is one of my favorite posts -- probably because I am a daughter who has a special relationship with my mom...AND I'm a mommy who has a daughter for a best friend. May sound strange to some to have an 8 yr. old for a best friend, but she truly is....we do everything together - I would be lost without the sunshine she brings to my life!
BTW - Love your Tussie Mussie! So beautiful!!

Anonymous said...

Such a lovely tribute. Bless you.
Happy Valentine's Day!

MTJ said...

Hi Pamela,

As I read your post, I reminded myself that I have the privilege of watching the friendship of my wife and our daughters. She has cultivated that friendship and it is clear, they are friends. Perhaps it is different with fathers, perhaps I need to work more intently at being a friend.

I do not know what a Tussie Mussie is, but I am striving to be that kind of friend.

Sending you and family a Happy Valentine's Day.

Blessings and peace.

MTJ

Jocelyn said...

Enjoyed this - the pictures of everyone were beautiful and I agree completely with the quote =) My mother and I have drawn much much closer as I grew up =D. Have a blessed week!

Karen said...

So beautiful. I enjoyed visiting your blog. Happy Valentine's day!

Kym said...

My mother and I have become true friends once I became an adult, and what a precious gift that is! Especially after those difficult years when I was a teen and we didn't agree on much of anything. Now that I have a daughter (my youngest child, she is 9), of course I am her parent first, but my goal is to do whatever *I* can to ALSO be her trusted friend and confidant as she grows up. Beautiful post - thanks for sharing!

Renee said...

What a beautiful tribute to your daughters and your mother. What a special blessing for you to have such close relationships with your girls! Love the rose you made too...just delightful...
God bless...and Happy Valentine's

Charlotte said...

What a beautiful post. I agree with you about mothers and daughters. There's no other relationship on earth quite like it. I was an only child and my mother and I were great friends as I was growing up and until she went to be with the Lord in 1999. I have one daughter and we are also good friends. I'm so glad she lives about 5 miles from us. Sons are wonderful too. We also have a son that we are very close to.
Thank you for sharing on Spiritual Sundays.
Blessings,
Charlotte

Unknown said...

What an amazing and heartfelt post.. made me tear up a bit at the strength of your faith and bonds with your daughters.. I hope that as my daugther grows we find the same lovely relationship... Thanks so much for sharing this post and your beautiful tussie with the Pink Hippo Party!