Yes, I'm a shopper

Growing up, my mom and my (maternal) grandmother used to shop every other season for school clothes. My mom and grandma were so generous in what they would buy me and looking back on it, I'm so grateful to have had those new clothes to go back to school with. I felt cool and confident in my new kicks every year, or those new name brand jeans and that soft sweatshirt from the Gap.

Silly as it may seem, the highlight of my year was the smell of that Mall when I opened the doors, the newness of each store every year knowing that I had my mom and grandma with me, spending time doing something we all enjoyed doing and how much they enjoyed being with me. I felt like nothing could bother me, it was an escape if I had had a bad week with friends (junior high), or a bad test taking week at school, I just knew that this would make me feel jubilant, like nothing could bring me down.

My point? Ella makes me feel like this everyday. I wake up in the morning (sometimes very early) and think "it's a new day with my beautiful daughter". How lucky am I to have her in my life. She's my new "mall" and even when I'm wearing my WalMart jeans and my hair up in a bun because I just didn't have time to do it that morning, it doesn't matter. Being Ella's mom is like walking into a sweet smelling mall everyday. I hope her and I can continue this tradition with my mom.