A Mother's Son

When both my sons were babies most people would say that they were clones of my husband, their "father's son", with only slight variations of me, my mother, his mother, his sister, my brothers and so on. My mother especially loves to make comparisons about who my sons look like. She could go on a lecture circuit about how fascinating it is to her that my son Andrew has blue eyes like her when Dave and I have brown. He also has blond hair and fairer skin, which is like my husband's sister. Go figure DNA. All in all, my sons both have that distinctive shaped head, mouth and shape of face that is my husband. Yes, there is certainly no denying these sons.

A couple weekends ago, we visited a community holiday party with holiday crafts, carriage rides, live reindeer, and a Santa for free pictures. Much to my surprise, Andrew ran right up to Santa and sat on his lap. And then I snapped this picture:



Also, 36 years ago, one of my parents snapped this picture:



Beyond the cranium, the lips, the shape of his face, somewhere in there, in the expression or the eyes--I can't decide--there is me.

I have to agree, it is fascinating how DNA works. My sons could not have my eye color, hair color or skin tone, but in a quick moment there is a glimmer of me in a smile, a giggle, a frown, a curious look. How a person can look like 2 people in one moment, transcending one parent to another with the turn of the head, the blink of an eye, the quiver of a lip; it's genetics in motion, and it's a miracle to see.

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A must not finish this post without a shout-out to my blogging buddy, Mayberry Mom, who graciously awarded me with this blog award:



As Mayberry explains, the award is defined as:

The recipients "are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers!"

I'm totally flattered by its meaning, that I am "kind" and not "self-aggrandizing". (Hmmm, "kind." If only you knew me in the "real world" - ha! kidding. kind of.) And totally flattered that I received it. (*See me blush*) Mayberry is one of those tried and true blogging friends that I've been following almost since I began blogging. And she knows me well enough to know that I need a little attention right now. Thanks again, Mayberry! I plan to share with the peeps as soon as I complete my nomination list.