My mom was such a talented creative woman (she could look at any item of clothing & create the pattern for it out of her head!) and she was a true partner with my father in their business. This picture is actually my parent's weddding photo. They got married during one of his leaves from the Coast Guard & she quickly created this dress for the event. Although she only had a high school education, my mom had excellent taste & an great interest in the arts.
But beyond her talents & abilities, I was most impressed with my mother's priorities. Her Christian faith & her family were her passions and we were all blessed to grow up in the home she created. Later in life, I saw her amazing example of unconditional love & positive sweetness as she cared for my father during the many years of Alzheimers. My mother passed away 4 years ago, but her memory lives on for me & the next generations.

When I was in HS I had got suspended for throwing a book out of the window. After being off for a week my mom had to go to the school with me before I was allowed back to class. My mom was mad at the principal for letting me have a “weeks vacation” from school she told him that all my friends cut out of school and went swimming in our pool all week. So my mom made the principal give me another two weeks of after school detention. Never make an Italian mom angry.
😧.

I remember many things about mom however some of my fondest memories were coming home from school to a kitchen table full of homemade bread, buns and cinnamon rolls. When my older sisters and I walked thru the door a wave of warm wholesome baked goods filled our senses and soul like the first warm sunny day of spring after a long Minnesota winter. Or the smell of roast beef and boiled potato's and gravy on the stove every Sunday around 11am as she would start prepping dinner after we came home from church. Dinner was always conversation time and a chance to catch up with everyone and everything....I miss those days.... One of my favorite sayings of hers I still remember to this day when I make a dumb mistake is "some people live and learn Billy some just live". Happy Mothers Day Mom! I know you saved a place in heaven for us!

My beautiful, sweet, momma is someone I've always looked up to. Her adventurous spirit is the reason why my brother and I are here today of course. When she was my age, she got offered a modeling job in Tokyo, Japan, and decided on a whim to go-although she didn't know a single person, didn't speak a word of the language, and had never left the country. Of course her outgoing, fearless, and vivacious personality allowed her to thrive in a country that was completely unfamiliar territory to her. She ended up living there for almost seven years and fell in love with not only the country but a local guy (AKA my father) and that's where the story of my brother and I started.
I've always been so inspired by her story, that before graduating I had the opportunity to do an internship for the summer in the same city where it all started. I have always been independent, but navigating a foreign city on my own was a whole new level for me. I was able to find the exact apartment she lived in, the streets she used to walk every day, and the landmarks around the city she would always talk about. It was such a surreal experience for me, I almost felt as if I were retracing her steps. It gave me a whole new appreciation and respect for my mom, and the journey she went through so many years before. Long story short, I'm so thankful for my moms adventurous spirit, for not only giving me life (obviously), but allowing me to channel that adventurous side from her and giving me some of my most cherished memories and a second place to call home.