Somebody pass me the tissues.....

My oldest child is 14 today. He has a moustache. In 4 more years he'll be an adult.

I'm feeling uncharacteristically emotional about this birthday. I'm not sure why that is, but it is.

The day I gave birth to this boy was probably the most important day of my adult life. Being a mother has so much to do with the rest of the choices in my life. You become a mother...and you lay your life down for it. Over and over again.

This is my favorite picture of me as a mother. It was taken just a few minutes after my son was born. (I even have the bloody hospital gown to prove it. Do you see that?) I'm so young...only 21 when he was born. And I felt like I could leap tall buildings in a single bound.

It's both sad and exciting to have my kids growing up. You have know idea what's coming around the bend, so it's scary too.

Even though I dubbed him Sullen here, he's a really great person and I like him so much. Now I'm gonna go blubber some more on my own....

(You can leave Sullen a Happy Birthday comment over at his blog. He'll be delighted.)