Saturday, April 28, 2012

Unconditional Love

There are some things that are just nonnegotiable. Love is one of those things. When you really love someone you always love them. It doesn't change because you don't get what you want. I am so grateful for Daniel and his family.
It isn't often that you hear about how wonderful someones in laws are, but mine are awesome. I came into this every mothers worst nightmare. I had two young children and contentious divorce, I was damaged beyond belief and really just a total mess. If I had been in my Mother in Law's position I would have told my boy to run for the hills, and she may have, but I never heard about it. Instead this woman invited me to her house, treated me with respect, and was never any less that awesome. She took my boys right in as though they had always been part of her world, allowing them to call her "Memere" just like all the other kids.  The boys loved Mem and Pep from the beginning . Even when the boys couldn't spend Christmas with the family because of legal issues, the entire extended family still gave them gifts. That Christmas I couldn't give them much, we had just moved overnight days earlier. I had no money, I couldn't give them a thing. The entire family pulled together and did for the boys (without even knowing it) what I couldn't do.

It's at a point that when talking to my mother in law about AJ or Tyler she will say something about them being a lot like their dad, forgetting that there is no genetic component between them. How amazing that must feel to be so unconditionally loved by someone who doesn't need to love them. The rest of the family, cousins, sister in law, brother in laws, aunts, uncles, and cousins have all been so amazing and loving to these boys, and for that I am so grateful. It was never about me, they didn't have to know or like me to like the boys, and I am so blessed to have them as part of our family.

No one is perfect, but love does so much.