What’s love got to do with it?

I remember growing up, walking through the grocery store in search of the perfect box of Valentines Day cards to hand out to my classmates. It was an all day event making heart shaped crafts in the classroom, passing out those little candied hearts and wearing red and pink to show a semblance of what love looks like.

Fast forward and I’m married with two children. Every year on this day my then husband would buy me the same dozen red roses, a bottle of the most expensive wine or champagne and would take me out to some fancy dinner. It was nice, but I often wondered…why the big show of love on this day? And why can’t I have hand picked wild flowers instead of red roses?

But this day holds a special place in my heart for a different reason. On February 14, 2005, I learned that I was going to be a mother. I knew that my body was going through some changes and intuitively something felt different. That night, I shared with my friend what I was feeling and she just happened to have a pregnancy test at home. I saw two lines appear…a positive pregnancy test. Then I took another one on the way home just to be sure. Maybe that first test was false? Nope, the second one was positive too. And then to be even more sure, I went into a clinic the following morning for an ultrasound. As she put a jelly-like substance on my belly and moved her mouse-like device around, we looked at the little black screen and heard a heartbeat. It was official…I was pregnant. That next evening, I broke the news to my soon-to-be husband over a home cooked meal. I gave him a card that had big hands holding little feet and then showed him the strip of black and white ultrasound photos. We were going to be parents.

September of that year, I gave birth to our daughter, Sophia (or Sophie as I call her). A beautiful child with curly, blonde hair and so much spirit and joy. I have loved my journey of being her mom (and Gigi’s). It has been my greatest purpose and gift.

So what’s love got to do with it? A heck of a whole lot. But not because V-day says you should celebrate love in whatever commercial form that looks like, but because of all the moments we experience that show us that we are loved.

I love you, Sophie and Gigi!

Mom