Last week I gave you six other “moms” that God gave me. He took my birth mother sooner than I would have agreed to but God didn’t ask me what I wanted. He had bigger and better plans for me. Losing my mom was tragic for me and my family, but I choose to see the good instead of dwelling on the negative impact it could have made on my life.

I might have lost my mom, but God gave me a dozen more. Some have played their part and are viewing from the balcony. Two have gained their angel wings. The others are there answering any time I call. I also have new “moms” popping up and helping me out when God knows I need one

Below are the other half of my dozen plus one “moms.”

Mama Jaco – I believe most people call her Sissy and I honestly don’t know her real name. I have called her Mama Jaco from day one. Her daughter Jessica went by her last name Jaco, so she was Mama Jaco. She was really everyone’s mom. I think her name came from our other friend Amanda. Mama Jaco always made sure we were fed. She cooked for us all the time. Every morning I woke up at her house, she made me chocolate gravy. And I stayed at her house a lot. It was my second home in high school.

Granny – My daddy’s mom. She lived close by and her house was also a second home. She spoiled me rotten. She gave me all the cokes, candy, and snacks I wanted. She also got me, my brothers, and cousins a trampoline. I am surprised we all survived the trampoline without any broken bones. She definitely let me have fun, but she kept me in line. She also wanted me to know how to act like a lady. Yes ma’am and thank you were required. She even talked my daddy into making me go to Junior Cotillion. That’s where you learn to ballroom dance, set a proper table, and all about manners. Needless to say, I didn’t like it and I complained so much  that they didn’t make me go back. Now, I surprise others on how nice I can make a table look. I also got first place in the fox trot once. Granny is in the running with my daddy for my biggest fan. She was there for most of my games, proms, graduations, and anything else I told her about. And since I have been writing, I have messages from her and my daddy every Wednesday. 

Dottie – She is my step-mom. She and my daddy starting dating when I was young and gotten married in 2005. I think. She is the one that kept us fed. Don’t worry my daddy fed us to but she was always cooking for us or bringing something for us to eat. She use to make the dresses I wore to church, made my fifth grade graduation dress, and my senior prom dress. She has done a lot for me. She has currently moved from my seamstress, to my photographer. She has taken all the recent pictures of me that I use for my blogging.

Dorris – Her daughter Julie, was my first friend at my new school in tenth grade. We immediately bonded and became best friends. I spent a lot of time at Dorris’ house and she soon became mom. She was brutally honest, but I could talk to her about anything. I would call her house and say hi mom, can I talk to Julie please. She took me in as a second daughter. Julie would sometimes joke that her mom liked me more than her.

Brenda – She is a new mom that has recently come into my life. She is my current best friend’s mom. I call her Mama B. She has taken me in like she has known me forever. She is fun to talk to and always makes me laugh. She is usually a part of girls night and listens to all our drama without any judgement. I am still in amazement at how quickly she has let me be a part of her family in the short time we have known each other.

Nana – My mom’s mom. She’s funny, a storyteller and has more faith than anyone I have ever met. She was another grandmother that spoiled me rotten. When I was a kid, she gave me and my brothers whatever we wanted. She got in the floor with us and played, would shoot spit wads back at us, and let us turn her table into a tent. We basically tore her house apart. She would tell us scary stories in the dark and scream just like a witch. And she taught me how to cook. She has the biggest heart, and the person I go to when I need prayer. My faith comes from her. I still haven’t had a conversation with here where she hasn’t mentioned God at least 4 times. She can quote the Bible like no other, and has asked me to go look up certain stories that would help me. She tells me stories about my mom and has given me things my mom made her. I am 36 and I still sit in her lap so she can rub my back. I am the goofiest and my truest self around her. 

Tracy – She’s my daddy’s sister. She’s heard all my drama. And I mean all of it. From fights with my daddy to breakups with boys. When I would fight with my daddy, she’d let me get it all out and just listen. And she was usually on his side. Ugh! Since I’ve been able to drive, I have spent just as much time at her house as I have my own. She knows when I am ready to listen to her and hear that I am wrong. She lets me cry out my feelings then tells me it’s time to move on. She doesn’t always agree with the decisions I make but she respects them and still loves me. She taught me all about a period and took me to my first female doctors appointment. She helped me pick out my prom dress and did my make up. She has always been there and is the first “mom” I will call when I need advice. She is the one that makes me talk about my mom and keeps her spirit alive.

Thank you to each of these “moms” that have helped me get through life. All of you have had an impact on me more than you realize. My mom would be so grateful to know that she didn’t leave me alone to do life. She had other women step up and help her out, when she couldn’t be there. I was once told that my mom asked my dad to remarry after she passed so I wouldn’t grow up without a mom. My daddy didn’t remarry till I was twenty-three, but I wasn’t left to grow up without a mom, thanks to all of you. God gives us what we want, maybe just not how we expect it. He answered my moms prayers by given me a dozen plus one moms.

Thank you God for giving me more than my mom asked for. And most importantly thank you for giving me a daddy that accepted these women to be in my life.