A Mother's Memories to Her Child: My Birth

I recently reread a book my mom wrote for me. A Mother's Memories to Her Child. I gave it to her for Christmas in 2004. She gave it to me in 2010 after I had Maya. I am going to answer some of the questions from the book for Maya, and I will share the answers with you.

MY BIRTH
When and where I was born
June 1, 1978 - Hermann Hospital - Houston, TX

My parents named me
Dawn Marie Ambuehl

• Dawn for Dawn Osborne
• Marie for my mother
• Ambuehl for my father

My earliest memories
Getting my thumb slammed in a car door while helping my neighbor's mom put her son in his car seat. It was very painful, which is why it is my earliest memory.

Watching the rain on the windowpanes in the living room.

Waking up after nightmares and running to my parents room. Crawling in bed with my mom because she made me feel safe.

Getting teased on the playground because I didn't play like all the other kids. I wrote stories and drew pictures.

Getting choked by a boy as I tried to run away from him on the playground.

Watching a boy in my class get bullied by other boys.

Prank calling boys with my best friend while hiding in her closet buried beneath the clothes.

Birthday parties in the backyard. I'm a summer baby, so we always got to run around in our swimsuits. My mom made cakes for almost every one of my birthdays. She took a Wilton class to learn how to decorate them.

The Halloween costume parade at my elementary school. I was "Mary Had a Little Lamb," and the boy I had a crush on told me I looked pretty.

Trips to Florida to visit my grandma. She was my best friend.

Going antiquing with my Uncle Ed. He is still my favorite uncle.

Dancing in the living room with my mom and sister to the Beatles' "Strawberry Fields."

Fighting with my sister, and kneeling in the corner of the hallway until we apologized to each other.

Building houses, ships, and forts with pillows with my sister, and turning the fan on high to pretend we were in a storm.

My mom, my sister, and me getting sick with the flu and missing the Christmas play at my elementary school. My mom was so sick, she came into our room to wake us for school and just collapsed on our floor. My dad had to help us all get dressed.

Performing a dance to the Beastie Boys' "You Gotta Fight for Your Right to Party" in music class.

My first cat Sir John. He was pure white, very large, and liked to sit on the headboard of my mom's bed and swat at her hair. I adored him. I cried when he died, and my parents buried him in the back yard.