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July 4, 2011

No One Like Her ~ Guest Post by, Alison of "Mama Wants This"

There is no one like her, really.

She is of generous spirit.

She is warm and kind.

She is gentle, yet strong.

She is loving and tender.

She is my mother-in-law.

I know, I am extremely lucky.

I have heard too many stories of nightmarish in-laws.

Of interfering, bossy, unsupportive in-laws.

When I met her for the first time for lunch, she took the hand I extended to
her, clasped it close and said she was thrilled to meet me. She asked all
about me, my family, genuine interest in every word, every smile, every nod
of the head.

When my husband and I got married, she embraced me and told me that we are
now family. She turned to her other two sons and said, "She is your sister
now."

When I told her about my pregnancy, she teared up and told me she was so
happy for me, for my husband. For the next 8 months, she made sure she
cooked me food that nurtured my pregnancy, my health. She knitted blankets,
hats, mittens, shoes, all gorgeous in their miniature form.

When my son, her first grandchild was born, she hugged me, said
congratulations and told me I would make a good mother. She took care of me,
like I was her own. She cooked nutritious meals for me, made me cups of
tea.

She showed me how to bathe a newborn, how to get a onesie over his delicate
head, how to swaddle him.

She looked after the baby so I could sleep, take a hot shower that lasted
more than 2 minutes, pumped milk.

Because of her, I now have a few hours of time to myself every day. She and
my father-in-law look after my toddler every afternoon. She thanks me for
that. She sees it not as a chore, or a favor, nor out of necessity. She
LOVES having him there.

She helped me potty train him. She makes him lunch some days, dinner every
day. She makes sure he gets snacks. She takes him out for walks. She makes
him clothes. She's sewing him a quilt.

She does all this out of love. Love for my son, love for her son, my
husband, love for me.

She has no idea how much she means to me. How different my life would be if
I did not have her in it. How different my son's life would be.

I hope that some day, she will know.

This post was written by Alison of the blog Mama Wants This!  To learn more about Alison check out her very interesting bio.

30 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for having me Heather & Kerry!

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  2. Heartwarming, sincere, and well-delivered post, Alison! You're one lucky woman, who totally deserves it all. Do tell your mother-in-law that a friend of yours says hi :)

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  3. You are so blessed to have such a kind soul in your life. She reminds me a lot of my MIL. She took my husband and I in her home when I was pregnant and my husband just returned home from Iraq. And she let us stay as long as we needed after the baby was born. We'll be moving out of state next week and I'm really going to miss her. Thanks for sharing your beautiful post.

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  4. This is awesome, Alison! You are so lucky to have her. I could feel your love for her through your words.

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  5. How blessed you are to have such a wonderful mother-in-law. I'm really happy for you.

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  6. Beautiful, Alison! Wow, she is amazing. Just look at that precious photo, too. She loves that boy to bits! :)

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  7. Oh Alison, this was beautiful! You are so so lucky to have such a wonderful woman in your life. The love she has for you, your husband, and your son is shown through your words and that picture.

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  8. Such a beautiful tribute to a wonderful (sounding) woman! You and Monkey are very lucky. I'm on the opposite side of the spectrum (in the MIL-is-mortal-enemy camp) so I'm living vicariously through you on this one...

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  9. She sounds amazing! You got yourself a gem!

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  10. My gosh, are you lucky.

    Seriously.

    My MIL makes it known she is disappointed in her son's choice.

    Not what she had hoped for.

    You are so very, very lucky to feel such love.

    I am happy for you.

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  11. Thank you all for your lovely and kind comments. I am indeed very lucky.

    @dosweat - You're too kind! I will send your regards :)

    @mommymandi - I'm so sorry you'll be moving far away from your wonderful MIL. At least there'll be visits to look forward to!

    @Jen - I am lucky indeed.

    @mom2kiddos - I am truly blessed, thank you.

    @Dwija - She does love him to bits, I don't think she loves anyone more than him, really.

    @Kim - She is wonderful, that is one of my favorite photos of her with my son.

    @jenny - I'm so sorry that your MIL is on the other end of the spectrum of wonderful :(

    @Rach - I know I do, I thank my lucky stars daily.

    @Empress - I'm so sorry your MIL does not appreciate you as you should be appreciated, wife to her son, mother to her grandsons. I am lucky, I tell myself that daily.

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  12. Wow, Alison. You are SO lucky. She sounds like a wonderful person. I wish my MIL wasn't so far away. What you wrote about your Mother-in-Law is every girl's dream:) Cherish her!

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  13. It is wonderful to have a MIL that you can be close to. Because it is true that you are now part of each others families. I have this too and am so blessed.

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  14. I have tears in my eyes. How wonderful for your son to grow up loved by his grandma. And for you to have a srong woman by your side.

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  15. So nice you have such a loving mother in law. A very important bond to have.

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  16. Such a beautiful post! Your words show all of the love and admiration you have for her! You are one lucky gal!

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  17. What a beautiful tribute to your mother-in-law. Having just become a new nani, I'm working on that same sort of relationship with my DIL. I love her like a daughter and am so happy that we get on so well.

    Your MIL is blessed to have such a loving DIL like you, as you are to have her

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  18. This is beautiful....it's such a blessing to have wonderful in-laws. I do as well =)

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  19. Alison, this post is so heartfelt and beautiful.
    You should print it off for her.
    How special to have a mother in law like her.

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  20. @Bees With Honey -Yes I cherish her, I know I'm extremely lucky!

    @Stephanie & @Stasha - I love that I'm part of this amazing family, and am so glad my son has awesome grandparents

    @Jessica - I am very fortunate, yes.

    @Barbara - Thank you for your kind words.

    @Fi - Congratulations again on your newborn grandson! I love that you're on great terms with your DIL, I'm sure you're a brilliant MIL!

    @Rachel Joy - We are blessed, aren't we?

    @Leighann - Thank you. I'm a little embarrassed to show this to her - she doesn't know I blog! :)

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  21. Wow you are so lucky! She sounds like a great woman...I'm so glad she loves your son so much...and you for that matter! Not everyone has a MIL like that!

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  22. What a beautiful post!

    I don't think that very many people are as lucky as you are. She seems like the most wonderful and accepting person in the entire world. I think that it'd be hard to imagine your life without her.

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  23. Wow. I don't even know what to say. My mother in law is nothing like this, quite the opposite actually. You seem to know what you have and are grateful for it. You are a lucky girl!

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  24. @Natalie + @Jackie - Yes I am very lucky, and I am probably one of few who can write a post like that about their MIL! Life without her? Unimaginable.

    @Catherine - I'm sorry your MIL isn't supportive and loving like mine. I do realize I am super lucky.

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  25. Alison - that is so awesome. I'm happy for you that you have had such a good experience with your MIL. What a supportive mom and grandma.

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  26. It's so great that you all enjoy this closeness. Everybody involved benefits. When 2 families come together you just never know how it's going to go. It's so nice to hear harmonious stories like yours.

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  27. You are so, so, so blessed.

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  28. Yup. Blessed for sure. And it's so great that you know it and are thankful.

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  29. @Elena - Thank you, she is pretty awesome.

    @quasiagitato - You're right, we are one of the success stories!

    @MamaMash + @Desperate Housemommy - I am blessed and very fortunate.

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  30. I wasn't able to comment on this when I was in New York, but I loved it so much I did not forget to come here when I got back.

    I think it's so nice to hear of an appreciated and healthy relationship between a woman and her mother in law. I had tears in my eyes reading it. I am pretty lucky in the mother in law department and you spurred me to text her and tell her I love her. Made her day. :-)

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