By Loren Ward 
If I end up marrying him, I get to have her as my mother-in-law. Those were the words that went through my mind the first time I met my mother-in-love, Mary Ann.
It was May 9, 2021. I had been dating her son for about three months, and she invited me to join them on a Mother’s Day lunch in Idaho. I was ecstatic to meet her as I had heard so many good things about her from Cooper. I remember feeling so seen and valued in her presence. She was so kind to me, and I felt like I could relate to her.
On the way back to the parking lot, I mentally captured an image of her and Cooper side-hugging each other as they walked and talked. They had a beautiful relationship, and I knew at that moment that she would make a wonderful mother-in-law if I ever married Cooper.
And my judgment was right. But what I didn’t know was just how much of a blessing she would be in my life as our friendship grew and our relationship deepened when I married Cooper.
Mary Ann almost always has the right words, the right encouragement, and the right Scripture verse whenever we talk to one another. She has been able to speak life over me and walk alongside me during some difficult seasons in the past two years. She has welcomed me so openly and lovingly into her family and never fails to amaze me with her gentle soul.
I spent years praying and journaling about the type of husband I wanted, but I never even considered the type of mother-in-law I wanted to have. But God knew exactly the type of mother-in-law I needed.
I am blessed with a mother-in-law who is the biggest cheerleader of my marriage. A mother-in-law who hugged me and told me I was going to be a great mom when Cooper and I faced an unplanned pregnancy in college. A mother-in-law who comforted me in my grief when I lost two babies to miscarriages. A mother-in-law who prayed for me as I sought healing from the Lord and who continues to cover me in her prayers.
A mother-in-law who walked alongside me when I became pregnant with my rainbow baby and cheered me on as I embraced motherhood. A mother-in-law whose relationship with her son inspires me to be the best mom I can be for my own son.
She might be the mother-in-law I chose when I married her son, but she was the mother-in-love that God chose for me because He knew I needed a Mary Ann in my life.
Originally published on the author’s blog
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