"Calm down, Ashley"..."Okay. Chilling out."

So I talked to my mom today and she made me feel a lot better about everything. Thank goodness!! I was really starting to freak out.

It was really great to just sit and talk to her anyway. We talked about favorite family traditions and holidays and stuff. We laughed about crazy childhood stories involving Candace and TJ and myself. We had a lot of really great times!! My mom was a single parent for a lot of my childhood--and she had THREE kids!! It gives me a lot of hope and reassurance--I can do this!!

I decided that I want to make a recipe box (again--I used to have one, but it got lost in one of many moves...). I'm going to send blank recipe cards to my mom and Ray's mom and other family members (like my sister--that girl can COOK!) and have them copy down favorite family recipes. I know for sure that I want the pie crust recipe from Candace (I always forget it...even though it's only like three ingredients), a handful of recipes from my mom (she has some of grandma's old recipes) like her taco soup, breakfast pizza, and potato salad, and Ray's mom makes the BEST rice (she has a few other great recipes up her sleeve too)!!

Anyway, I'm feeling a lot better today. Thank goodness!!