Birth Stories are enduring, amazing stories remembered, treasured and retold by mom’s across the world and over centuries. When I was a young mother I had a neighbor who showed me my future through a conversation we had on a sunny Southern California sidewalk one day, some 15 years ago.
That neighborly conversation stuck with me and helped me understand the impact bringing children into the world would truly have on the rest of my life.
Dot was 85 years old and I began to see her less frequently over the past year. She and her husband Bob, now gone, used to walk the neighborhood each evening. She would often stop to talk, always seeming to ask questions that gave away she was watching our family’s comings and goings from her kitchen window.
One day our talk turned to babies, and with unusual clarity, Dot recalled the birth of each of her three children, now grandparents themselves. As a new mom, my firstborn’s birth story was fresh in my mind, all the little details and emotions of that day.
I had yet to experience the journey of motherhood, not truly understanding the magnitude of each child’s story and the lasting imprint it would leave on my heart and mind.
Now, with a few more years of motherhood under my belt, I still can tell the story of each child’s entry into the word with clarity and I can see at 86 the story will still be engraved on my heart.
In today’s modern world, there are so many more means to help us remember our stories…
…like ultrasound pictures we save and treasure from our doctor’s appointments, selfies of our pregnant selves and time lapse videos created to show 9 months of miracle in mere seconds. Our baby books may be online or stored on our phone or computer for generations to come.
What the pictures and videos’ can’t capture is the picture of how your heart changes from that day forward.
That change is shown whenever we recount the day we brought our children into the world, and our heart still swells with a mother’s love, even after all those years.
What is your birth story or stories? What will you always remember?
Check out our story of life frame
Hi I’m Teri Harrison , a sap for sentiment, busy mom of 4, creative idea junkie, Grandparent Gift Co. owner, writer and blogger!
Once upon a time there was a little girl…
The little girl’s Grandma had a silver candy dish that was always overflowing
with love. The little girl could hardly wait to visit Grandma’s
house so she could lift the lid of the silver candy dish to
see what Grandma had left for her.
Jelly orange slices were her favorite—those perfect little slivers of happiness dusted
with sugar. Each sweet bite represented the deliciousness that was Grandma’s house.
Many years passed and the little girl grew up, but the love for Grandma’s silver candy dish
still remained in her heart. It became the inspiration behind
many poems and product ideas, and the cornerstone
from which her company, The Grandparent Gift Co., was
founded. The company now spreads love and sweetness
just as Grandma did, with gifts rich in sentiment and love
for all family members, created for all occasions.
So from the little girl still inside me and the wife, mother of 4 and
business owner I am now, I am thrilled you decided to join us at the Orange Slice.
We hope you find a delicious mix of inspiration, nostalgia, gift ideas,
grand news and, of course, your candy dish memories, too…
