Blatantly Pulling the Proud Mom Card

Day 346

April 22, 2014

Team Zybko

Diane knew it was coming, I'm sure of it. This smarty pants college senior more than likely could sense the wheels in motion. She also knows me well enough to see me think out loud without a single word spoken, camera in hand.

Oh geez, she probably thought, this may embarrass me. Ready, wait for it.....1....2....3.

I'm reaching in my pocket now. She was right. 

I was in fact planning on pulling the proud mom card and soon. It's no mystery or news flash to the peeps my inner circle. One of two things must occur to make an event official, to be carved in stone, to be remembered forever by this old soccer mom and generations to come. A sticker on the back window and/or a blog post. To have both, well, that's the real deal.

We all think our kids are great, on occasion my ears have been subject to non-stop chatter and bleeding while listening to such parents. Yes, lady....I understand, your kid really is perfect and most wonderful, and the smartest and yes, how great you have confidence about them receiving a Noble Peace Prize in the future. 

Excuse me for a minute or a few weeks, I think I hear my mom calling me.......I'll be back....um....later.

My style of proud mom is more like shoving the comments about my children in the middle of a tasty camp fired S'more. Wrapping the happy bragging around a square of milk chocolate and fresh graham on both sides. Less obvious that way yet still full of goodness. Plus, I'm not usually into sharing my treats with the masses so blatantly.

With that being said and back to the point of this post, there will be no eating here tonight, no gracefully covering up my feelings. Sorry in advance.

Diane, you are awesome! Daddy and I couldn't be more proud of you. The actual process of applying the official Clemson sticker on the back of the Golden Bullet took mere seconds, the work to get there has taken you years. Way to go! Most of the classes you skillfully earned A's in I have trouble pronouncing, let alone spelling correctly. Whoop whoop! You successfully and somehow kept on schedule, despite the transfer after Plebe year, creating but a small speed bump in the process of obtaining a Bio Engineering degree. Keeping focused and giving it your all is the major of how you live life. 110 percent, 100 percent of the time. Love that.

Financial doing it by yourself will make a wonderful lesson and story to tell your very own kids one day. Combined with scholarships, working in hot and cold parking lots directing traffic and boring offices you figured it out on your own. Making ends meet to pay for your college education. No one can take that away. From the lessons learned, the experience of the journey, the ups and downs, all the way to the mounted diploma on the wall of your first job. Yours to keep. Cool huh? 

In one 11 & 1/2  by 14  frame it will say it all. Written beautifully in dark ink, there forever will be your full birth name, skillfully and artistically penned in fancy calligraphy. Maybe even on orange paper, not sure how that works....Go Tigers! 

 I am beyond thrilled to drive around town with your undergraduate school displayed for all of Charlotte traffic to read. But, better than any bumper sticker in the world is the way my heart swells with prideful tears. As usual, I am super delighted and overjoyed with contentment to share the same last name as you. 

Congratulations sunshine! 

You are almost there, the home stretch, finish line within sight.

We love you to the moon and back Di-Di! 

For all time, in permanent ink and everything.

OJBP