On being and becoming a Bruce...: Barnes & Noble Inspiration

Today is our three year anniversary. Three years! Didn't we just meet in high school yesterday? Wasn't I just giving 'my little Terry Bruce' rides to his exams because he moved from California and didn't have his license yet? Nope, that was a long time ago - and time has been flying ever since - but these have been fabulous three years! I could go on and on...but I won't...happy anniversary T, don't want to make you cry at work today :)

[yes, i know you have seen this picture on the blog already, but it's the only one i have from our wedding on the computer. beggars can't be choosers. feeling the need to reminisce with us, you can check out Kevin Milz - we are all over it!]

In honor of three years, we took the day off work yesterday to stay at home and relax (yes, our lives are that exciting that that is ALL we both wanted to do to celebrate!) but our amazing and fearless sister-in-law, Jenn (mother of 4 boys!) asked if she could keep Emerson overnight for us Monday night to let us really enjoy the day Tuesday by sleeping in! Despite a little sadness at Emmy being on her first sleepover, we said YES and enjoyed a full, uninterupted night's sleep for the first time in 5 months, and hung around with no agenda. FABULOUS. Emerson also slept for 12 hours, only waking up 1 time to eat - it must be something about Jenn's magical mother-of-4-children touch - that and the cave of a closet that Em got to sleep in. [Black out curtains are next on the list of things to buy for her nursery!] In our lounging around, I requested that we go to Barnes & Noble to peruse, something I've been wanting to do for awhile now but haven't felt peaceful enough to do! Boring, I know. But I loved it. And I read excerpts from some fabulous books that I wanted but decided not to get, and read excerpts from others that I thought would be fabulous and planned on buying but didn't because they weren't. Good to know. But I saw a book with this quote, and thought it was fabulous and 100% described motherhood for me:

[It was when I had my first child that I understood how much my mother loved me.]

My mom used to always say to me "you'll understand when you have kids." I always thought I already got it. I loved kids and was super involved in lots of kids lives and had lots of kids super involved in my life. But she was right (surprise)! To be a mother, to have a child, is to know a whole new kind of love - protective and endearing, long-lasting, full of fear and adoration.

And I imagine she would tell me the same about being a grandmother - that I'll understand when I have them. That seems forever away, but I'm sure by the time it gets here, time, again - will seem to have flown. Thanks Ma, for loving me and for loving Em in a way I could have never known until I got here.