When I think back to the writing I’ve done on this website, I realize that the descriptions of my life as the mother of four children (boy, girl, girl, girl) are often written through the filter of a harried, hurried, busy, frustrated, exasperated, exhausted woman on the edge of a meltdown or a breakdown. And on some days (the really, really bad days) I AM that woman living that life, and putting a funny spin on my life’s stories and publishing them for others to read, laugh at, and learn from is not only my schtick, it’s my coping mechanism.

But the problem with nearly almost always writing in that persona is that I rarely give a glimpse into my true feelings that I am so lucky to be sharing this thing we call life (electric word life) with four amazing human beings for whom I had part ownership in coding some wicked-awesome DNA.

So I thought I would fill some web space with all the wonderful truths I want the world to know about the four people whose very existence awards me the privilege of calling myself “Mother.”

MY OLDEST CHILD AND ONLY SON, JAKE
Jake is probably the most interesting sixteen-year-old a person could have the pleasure to know. And that is to say, he is simply so very interesting with which to converse, to debate, and to hear speak his mind. He has a clear set of likes and dislikes founded on his own processes of trial and error and research and he is not afraid to express his opinions. And he is also funny. Very, very funny. He is my little boy. He is my young man.

JENNA: MY FIRST GIRL
Fourteen-year-old Jenna, for her many clueless moments, is our straight-A National Honor Society student. So smart, that one. She is also kind and generous to a fault. She truly cares about other people’s feelings and goes out of her way to make everyone around her feel included and important. She always has. She is charismatic and outgoing and witty and snarky and is the best and worst of me all rolled up in one wonderful girl. I have a feeling someday when she’s all grown up we’ll be best friends.

EMMA, THIEF OF HEARTS
Emma, now seven, was a highly anticipated addition to what was our family of four, and she did not disappoint. From day one, she has been sweetness and light. She is our sensitive, shy girl who prefers best friends to big crowds, books to television, and pancakes to waffles. She is thoughtful and loyal and warm and empathetic. Plus that child has some seriously soft China doll cheeks.

MINI-ME: KATELYNN
Katelynn. Katelynn, Katelynn, Katelynn. My spitting image by looks, acts, likes, dislikes, attitude and disposition, even at four-and-a-half, Katelynn still manages to be her very own person. Cheeky and charming on the one hand, she is unafraid, unabashed, unedited, and unapologetic on the other. Of the three girls, she is the lone tomboy and proud of it. Other children are mesmerized by and drawn to her. She wants to be Batman when she grows up. She will probably be President instead.

I know (I hope) that one day these four human beings, my beloved children, Jake, Jenna, Emma, and Katelynn, will each in his and her own time be sitting in front of a glowing computer screen reading my words regarding our lives together during these years. I want them to know the whole truth about how deeply I love and care about each of them. I want them to know that I have felt so lucky to have been given the task of raising them. I want them to know that EVERY SINGLE DAY I think they are terrific.

Even on the really, really bad days.