I Am the Mother of a Future Groom - Shopping with Charlotte

When I was a young woman, life's milestone seemed to be infrequent, arriving after having traveled life's path for months at a time and then occasionally arriving at a significant juncture...a child's birth, a wedding, a first day of school...and I would say to myself, "Stop, Remember, This is important!"  

As I "mature" these milestone moments seem to be piling up on top of each other, faster than I can integrate them and at times I am overwhelmed with the sense of the significance of life.  Is it that as one ages, life moves faster?  Or, is it that as one ages and life simplifies, the significance of these special moments is more apparent?  I just know that I seem to want to walk through each day with my camera in my hand and my mind alert to pay attention because this is a milestone moment!

Yesterday was such a day.  In November, Charlotte will marry my youngest son, Marc.

She invited me, along with other significant women in her life, to accompany her as she went shopping for a wedding dress.  Wow!  What a special event.  I guess all cultures have their "women's rites of passage" but shopping for the dress you will wear on the day you will step into the new female role of wife is something that has to be done with other women who know and love you, women who will be just a phone call away as you navigate this new path, women who will share your happiness, console your troubled heart, encourage your frightened anxieties, and help you with a new recipe! 

Charlotte organized the day and researched dress styles so she entered the Bridal Shop armed with a plan and a budget.  Aunt Vickee, cousin Liz, best-friend Gina, future sister-in-law Milli and future mother-in-law ME took our seats as Charlotte told the saleswomen what she envisioned.

Then began the parade of dresses as Charlotte modeled.  Dress one, "nice neckline but too much skirt;" Dress two, "nice but not you;"  Dress three....pause...silence...tears..."that is it!"

Pictures were taken but kept under wraps because Marc cannot see it.  A deposit was made and suddenly it all seemed so very real to Charlotte.  She was going to be married, she was entering a new phase of her life, and she was surrounded by her women friends, those women who love her, who will be there for her, who will hold her up, laugh with her and cry with her.

I cannot imagine my life without my women friends.  These are the women who have shaped who I am and who I am yet to be.  They help me remember who I really am!  I never had daughters...finding myself in a family surrounded by men.  I was loved and respected by them, but I still yearned for a female connection.  Then, I was gifted with my daughter-in-love, Milli and I embraced my connection with her.  And now I have this wonderful opportunity to bond with my future daughter-in-love Charlotte.

Charlotte, you are a beautiful young woman.  I welcome you into my circle of women friends. Thank you for letting me share your special day and for experiencing another milestone moment in my own life!