From “Slayer Dude” to 35: My One and Only Baby Girl 🤘❤️
Tomorrow my baby girl turns 35. ❤️
35!
I’m not really sure how that happened because in my head, you’re still that little girl running around the house yelling, “SLAYER DUDE!” with your little hand up making the metal 🤘 sign. 😂
You have always had a personality all your own.
You would sing your little heart out, dress yourself in outfits that absolutely did NOT match, and somehow think you looked fabulous. 😂 And honestly, you probably did because you wore it with confidence!
You could amuse all of us without even trying. Making myself and my friends dance to Sally the Camel by Barney 😂
And then there was The Lost Boys.
You HAD to watch The Lost Boys to fall asleep. I don’t know how many times we watched that movie, but I think I can still hear your little voice saying Michael 😂
Then came the teenage years…
Ohhhh, those teenage years. 😂
Let’s just say you weren’t exactly a fan of the word “NO.” And unfortunately for you, I was your mother and “NO” was one of my favorite words.
We butted heads. A LOT.
We didn’t always get along the best, and there were definitely times when neither one of us wanted to back down. But looking back now, I realize those years were just part of you growing up and figuring out who you were.
High school wasn’t easy for you.
You were bullied. You dealt with a controlling boyfriend. You went through things that no mother wants her daughter to have to go through.
But you got through it. Nothing stopped you. You over came it
And then came 2010.
I’ll never forget getting that call from your boyfriend telling me you had won Prom Queen.
You may not have realized it then, but I cried.
I cried because I was SO incredibly proud of you.
I knew what you had been through. I knew some of the things that had knocked your confidence down. And then here you were, standing there as Prom Queen.
I hung up that phone cried and told your G and she said I always knew she was a queen. Now everyone knows. I giggled.
I don’t even know if I ever really told you just how much that moment meant to me.
But I hope you know now.
Then came Ferris State University.
You headed off to college and started figuring out what you really wanted to do with your life.
And then you decided you wanted to do hair.
So you left Ferris and went to cosmetology school.
And honestly, I guess it was meant to be. Both of your grandmothers did hair, so maybe that was just another thing that was always in your blood.
You graduated, and then the world changed.
The pandemic hit.
And while so many people were trying to figure out what the hell was going to happen next, you decided to take a chance on yourself.
You opened your own salon.
And girl…
YOU DID IT.
And you didn’t just do it.
You did GREAT.
You built something that was yours. You worked your ass off for it. You made it successful.
And once again, I was so damn proud of you.
Then a few years ago, you decided to try something new again, you met someone and headed down to the Detroit area.
And you’ve built a life there.
You’ve found a man you love, and you’re helping him raise his children.
And THIS still makes me laugh because you spent your entire younger life telling me you NEVER wanted kids. 😂😂
Never.
You were so sure.
And now here you are, helping raise children and loving them.
Life really does have a way of laughing at the plans we make for ourselves. 😂
But watching you grow into this person who can love someone else’s children, take them into your heart, and be there for them is something I never expected to see.
And I’m proud of you for that too.
When I look at you now, I see so much of myself in you.
You’re never satisfied with just staying where you are.
You want more.
You want to grow.
You want to try new things.
You want to see what else life has waiting for you.
And I love that about you.
And then there is G.
Your G.
My mom.
The woman who helped raise you. The woman you you refused to call grandma because that was your G. ❤️
You were her little angel.
Her only granddaughter.
She was ALWAYS so proud of you.
She was so happy to do your hair for prom. I seen her eyes light up and the smile while doing it. She was there to watch you graduate high school. She got to watch you graduate from cosmetology school.
Those were moments she was so incredibly proud of her girl. She bragged to everyone about you. You two may have clashed sometimes as she aged. But she loved you so very much.
Then in 2022, we lost her to COVID.
And there is something I will always be grateful for.
You went to the hospital to see her.
You were the only grandchild who went.
I don’t know if you will ever truly understand what that meant to G, and what it meant to me.
She was so sick, and yet you being there to see her mattered.
It meant the world.
And I will always believe that she knew you were there and she knew you loved her.
I know she would be so incredibly proud of you today.
If she could see you now, I know she’d be telling everyone about her girl.
Her only granddaughter.
Her little angel.
She’d be proud of the woman you’ve become, the life you’ve built, the love you’ve found, and everything you’ve accomplished.
And I know she’d probably still be bragging about how good you are at doing hair. ❤️
I wish she could be here to celebrate your 35th birthday.
I wish she could see you now.
But I know she’s still with you in so many ways.
And now I want to tell you something that maybe I haven’t said enough.
I know I wasn’t always the greatest mother.
I know there were times I could have done things differently. There were times we didn’t understand each other. Times we didn’t agree. Times we hurt each other.
But there is one thing I never got wrong.
I loved you.
I have loved you from the moment you came into this world.
You were my one and only baby girl.
And no matter how old you get, you’ll always be that little girl running around yelling “SLAYER DUDE!” with her little metal horns in the air. 🤘😂
You’ll always be the little girl singing around the house.
The little girl wearing clothes that didn’t match.
The little girl who couldn’t fall asleep without The Lost Boys.
You’ll always be my baby girl.
But today, when I look at you, I don’t just see that little girl.
I see a beautiful, strong woman who has been through some hard things and kept going.
I see the woman who became Prom Queen.
I see the woman who changed her path and found something she loved.
I see the woman who followed in the footsteps of her grandmothers.
I see the woman who opened her own salon during a pandemic and made it work.
I see the woman who moved downstate and built a life of her own.
I see the woman who spent years telling me she didn’t want kids, only to end up helping raise them. 😂
But most of all, I see my daughter.
My one and only baby girl.
And I couldn’t be more proud of you.
Happy 35th Birthday, Kira.
I hope you know how much I love you.
I hope you know how proud I am of you.
And I hope you know that no matter how old you get, no matter where life takes you, and no matter how far away you are…
I will always be your mama.
I will always worry about you. 😂
I will always cheer you on.
I will always want the best for you.
And I will ALWAYS love you.
From “SLAYER DUDE!” to the beautiful woman you are today…
What a ride it has been.
And I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
Happy Birthday, baby girl.
I love you so much!
🖤Mom
What I hear and see when I think of you Kira! You know why!
My song to you my baby girl!
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