Shining Like Fireworks

 Being a mom is 100% the hardest job in the world. It is also the one "job" that brings me the most joy, and yesterday was one of those unique times where I look at one of my kids and think, "maybe I didn't screw them up as bad as I thought I had." Because my kid, the one girl in my crew of chaos and crazy and weird boy stuff, she's pretty freaking amazing. 

If you haven't heard, Taylor Swift did this little thing in 2023 called the Eras Tour. If you haven't heard, I also wonder if you have access to radio, TV, social media, the Internet. Because it's pretty hard to miss! I've listened to Taylor off and on since her third album when she went more into the pop mainstream. My eldest niece was obsessed with Taylor back in the 2000s so I was a sideline fan because of her and because the older I get, the more I find myself listening to and liking Top 40 radio. My daughter started listening to Taylor (aside from just radio songs) when 1989 came out. She actually used to like to sing Bad Blood to her twin brother when he made her mad. That was her theme song for the frustrations and pain of twin life! 

So when the Eras Tour was announced in 2022, Rylee's friend's mom waited for hours online to get them tickets but wasn't successful. Fast forward to a few months ago when Taylor released additional Los Angeles dates, and her friend's mom was lucky enough to grab four tickets. My daughter works a part-time job, so she paid $260 for her ticket and was planning her outfit (Speak Now theme as that is her favorite album now) for months. One thing about my kid is that she is all heart. She puts her heart and soul into her friendships, her activities (ASB especially), and her family. She's got a heart of gold and sometimes that is abused by people who take advantage of her kindness and her willingness to go above and beyond for the people she cares about. I was so excited for her, but also nervous because she's 16 (but a young 16 in terms of life experience. She's not out running the streets or doing some of the things I was doing at 16) and she'd be in LA (Inglewood actually) with three other 16-year-olds at this concert. Mom worry set in, but I knew that I wanted her to have this experience and I trust that she makes good decisions. I was doing drop off yesterday and another mom was picking the girls up at midnight when the concert ended. 

The logistics all went fine, and waking up this morning and watching all of the videos and texts that she sent to me, I was on the verge of tears because I'm just so proud of the human she is and the good, kind heart that she has. She has sweet friends and a great circle of support and love around her. She's blessed. And life hasn't always handed us a pitcher of lemonade, we've had some lemons handed our way over the years, and she's always just stepped up and pushed through and succeeded. Seeing the joy on her face and hearing her sing out those lyrics and just love where she is and what she's doing, it makes my heart explode with happiness and pride. 

She's one of the very best things I'll ever do or create in this life, and I'm so incredibly happy that she had a night of joy and memories and all the good things in life. If you're reading this (which you probably don't, because I'm your mom and my blog is probably pretty boring to you), I couldn't love you more or be more proud of the human being that you are, Rylee Brooke. Keep shining like a firework over sad empty towns and keep surrounding yourself with people that you bring you up, not knock you down to make themselves feel bigger or better. You are amazing and I absolutely adore you.