I had the kind of night that mom's don't forget... Tonight, I dropped my baby off at homecoming. Now, that may not sound like much, but to THIS mom, it is. Let me explain...

Here is a picture of me with Reese in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, about 30 min. after I met him. He and I felt SO at ease with each other SO quickly, it was one of those "love at first sight" adoptions. He was my little buddy and I was sooooooo glad I listened to that "still, small voice", which wasn't so still, nor so small, about 6 months prior.

I have enjoyed watching Reese grow up a great deal and he has hardly ever given me any trouble at all. We have enjoyed that special mother-son bond and I have never taken it for granted, I promise you!

Well, tonight, he had his first big date, being a sophomore going to homecoming. To avoid giving away too much information that might embarrass him, suffice it to say that he asked a VERY nice girl out that he's known since 4th grade, when we moved here. I really like this girl and her mom, too. I was really happy with his choice. Anyway, we made a big to-do over getting her a corsage, matching his tie with her dress color, etc. and he was really spiffed up tonight - REALLY spiffed up. Mark graciously gave him some tie jewelry that he'd had for a very long time and was really special to him and Reese wore them proudly.

To see my son polished up like this kind of knocked me back - my son is not a boy anymore - he is fast on his way to becoming a MAN. And not only that, a man I am intensely PROUD of. This young man has more integrity than most people I know. I sometimes am amazed that I was able to raise him to be so wonderful. ...then I humbly remember that I was practically forced (lol) into adopting him by a Heavenly Father who always knows what's best!! And He has certainly done more than His share of raising him, and for that I am incredibly, eternally grateful.

But enough gush. Take a look at my little baby tonight:

Can you see why I'm gushing??? ;op

Anyway, after all the fuss and polishing, we were ready to go. I won't lie when I tell you that I had a BLAST giving Reese all KINDS of advice, like how to properly offer the corsage, to make sure he opened doors for her, how to offer his arm to her when they walked into the school, how to be the one to give his name to the hostess at the restaurant, etc. And the very BEST part was that he WANTED to hear it!! No teenage pride rearing it's ugly head! He listened to everything I offered and did his best to heed it! I do love that boy.

Here he is, when we picked up his date. She was SO excited!! He was offering her the corsage we'd ordered. She was so thrilled to have a corsage (thanks for the tip, Mom!!)!

And, of course, the obligatory "before the dance" shots:
He was so cute - he didn't know what to do with his arm, so he put it around her. ;op

I took them to the Cracker Barrel, where they ate at a different table (Erik was my date for this occasion), then I drove them to the dance. Kristina was full of fun, lively conversation the whole way - her mom is soooo blessed!!

I dropped them off, but we were early. They walked up to the doors but they were locked. Of course, I was still at the curb, waiting to see if they wanted to get back in the car, but when Reese saw me still standing there in the car, he gave me a little wave as if to say, "Thanks, Mom, you're excused now." And I drove off.

Holding back the tears was easy most of the night, because everything was so happy and exciting and cute, but when he gave me that little wave, it really hit me - my little baby is growing up. That's when the tears hit, and I was glad I was alone in the car, other than Erik, so I could cry. That kid means so much to me it almost hurts. I missed all of Natasha's special days, and probably will miss most of her future special days. Nikolai isn't really the type to do stuff like this, and hasn't really, though he's older than Reese. So this was extra special for me. I was really involved with these doings tonight, and I truly enjoyed every bit of it. It was a special night that I won't easily forget. Being a mom is such a privilege, and though I grumble at times and get myself worn out from being so busy, I wouldn't trade it for anything.


...now, I'll bet you can't wait to hear how slobbery I'll get when the boy gets married, can you?!