I wasn’t the mother that put a mirror under my baby’s nose to make sure he was breathing.  In fact, I was a very relaxed new mom and I’m not sure why, but I think it had to do with faith.

JoeSleepingRed

I had faith that the good Lord above was looking over my family; and my job was to do my best to keep my children safe and thank Him daily for entrusting those two cuties into my hands.

I suppose I have a pretty relaxed outlook on life.  My dad and I always said that my mom worries enough for the whole family, so why should we waste our time worrying.  And then I married a worrier, so I got another pass.

It’s probably a good thing that I got that pass, because I’m the mom of two boys, and boys tend to be risk takers.  They climb, jump, wrestle, punch, roughhouse… you name it, and they do it!  Worrying about all those shenanigans would drive a person insane!

The first big boo-boo happened when Daniel rode a neighbor’s little horse-on-wheels down their driveway, flipped it over, and skidded on his face.  A few kisses and band-aides later and he was as good as new.  No need to worry about that little mishap!

DanielBooBoo

Next came sports, and a golden opportunity for the boys to get beaned in the head with a baseball or bat, destroy a knee sliding in soccer, break a neck skateboarding, or dislocate a shoulder while wrestling.  I tended to be the mom screaming for my kid to run faster, not be careful!

The only serious sports injury that I can remember was when one of my sons stepped on another cross-country team member with his spikes, and sent him to the emergency room for stitches.  I guess the only thing to worry about there was getting sued, but it was an accident; so, no worries.

Driving opened a whole new can of worms for this non-worrier, and two times I must admit that I did worry.  The first time was when my oldest son got into the car with an older friend behind the wheel and they drove off.  It was surreal, and I was on pins and needles until they returned safely.

The second time I truly worried was when both sons drove off together in a 4,000-pound mass of steel with one of them behind the wheel.  They survived, and soon we weren’t thinking twice about letting them ride off together on their adventures.

DanielDriversLiscense

When our sons headed off to college, we had to trust that we had taught them to be self sufficient members of society who would, for the most part, make good decisions, and come home for that first Thanksgiving break alive.  Not only did they survive, but they both graduated from college, and both did so intact!

DanielFirstDayAtWVU

And everything about raising sons, rolling with the punches, staying a self-professed non-worrier, was truly tested on Saturday when they left for part-two of Joseph’s bachelor’s party.  They went skydiving…

Yes, both of my babies boarded a perfectly good airplane, and then chose to jump out of it!

You know… just step right out of a flying plane at 11,000 feet and free fall for about 45 seconds before the chute opened up, and guided them safely to the ground.

DanielSkydiving

JosephSkydiving

JosephChuteUpSkydiving

I didn’t worry about Joseph and Daniel on Saturday; and you know why?  I was too jealous to worry!

  • Questions:
  • Are you a worrier?
  • What’s the scariest thing you’ve ever done?
  • Have you, or would you go skydiving?