A Gift for Mom! 🤍

Mama, Love Your Son While You Are Still His Number One Girl

3 Minute Read

By Alyssa Becnel

Mom and son hug — Image via Alyssa Kinchen Becnel

Sappy post warning but if you are a boy mom this one is for you.

You always hear about a girl’s daddy “giving his daughter away” on her wedding day. I had never thought much about the mommas and their sons. I don’t have any brothers, so it never really crossed my mind.

But y’all—mommas give away something, too.

Something just as precious. Something I knew I would never get back.

I gave away being the one he hugs and kisses.

I gave away being the one he looks for in a crowd.

I gave away being the first person he turns to when things get tough.

I gave away being the one he makes laugh in the middle of day.

I gave away being his number one girl.

I gave away a piece of my heart.

I gave away my son.

Deep down I know he will always love me, but I also know he loves her more. He loves her more than his momma, and that’s OK. That’s how I knew he had found the one.

But isn’t that what we want? We want them to marry a girl who they will put first even if it means we become second.

Mother and son dance — Alyssa Kinchen Becnel

Mommas, love him while you are still first.

Kiss his sweet baby face and linger in those lanky teenage hugs.

Drive him to school even when he is grumpy and doesn’t say a word to you.

Listen when he needs to vent and blow off steam.

Love on his friends.

Bring the Motrin to school for the 100-thousandth time. He may have a headache OR he may just want to get out of class and chat with you for a minute.

Sit next to his hospital bed even though he screwed up.

Soak up every minute under those Friday night lights.

Love him, forgive him, and forgive yourself for the things you didn’t get right.

Because one day, you will give him away . . .

You will stand and watch him give his heart to the love of his life. You will dance and he will say the sweetest things about who he has become because of you. He will hug you tight and it will feel a little bit like a goodbye.

You will become his second-best girl and it will be so dang HARD.

Originally published on Facebook

Your Son Growing Up Will Feel Like the Slowest Breakup You’ve Ever Known” Aches in Every Mother’s Heart

So God Made a Grandmother book by Leslie Means

If you liked this, you'll love our book, SO GOD MADE A GRANDMA

Order Now!

#boymom boy mom boy moms give him away I love my son love him Motherhood my son number one girl son

Alyssa Becnel

I am a wife and mother of 4. I am a retired dental hygienist and lover of fitness and travel. Most days I can be found taking care of my family, killing it at the gym or reading.

Letting You Go Is Still So Hard

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Nothing really prepares you for the day your child leaves the house. Last September, my husband and I moved our 18-year-old son into his dorm room. Right after that, he was swept away into all things orientation, and we began our 1,000-mile journey back home. Leaving this beautiful human I raised and spent all those years with felt foreign. During our final hug goodbye, despite trying to hold in my pain, I broke out in huge, ugly, guttural tears. Our drive home was a long two days. It took every fiber of my being not to turn around. Returning to...

Keep Reading

Behind Every Smiling Graduate Is a Mother Letting Go

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Every year, millions of American families send their children off to their freshman year of college. Their pictures dot our social media feeds. Images of excited students holding collegiate pennants, maybe wearing a hat or holding up their school’s hand sign with beaming smiles. Their parents post excited words about futures and hopes and dreams. One chapter closing. Another opening. A new beginning. So why am I struggling so much? Why does this feel more like a loss than a gain? Why are my tears always on edge, threatening to spill over each time I think about August and what...

Keep Reading

Watching Your Children Build the Life You Prayed For Is Beautiful

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

“I love you, Mom.” “Hmmm?” (A little louder) “I love you.” “I love you too…so very much.” I’d been deep in thought, listening to the lyrics we were slowly dancing to. I knew this moment of ours was supposed to be the time to say all the things, but this boy and I had already said all the things, so the song the deejay played—written by Lori McKenna and sung by Tim McGraw—enchanted our ears: When the dreams you’re dreamin’ come to you When the work you put in is realized Let yourself feel the pride but Always stay humble...

Keep Reading

Soon There Will Be No More Breakfasts To Make

In: Grown Children, Motherhood, Teen

Ten boy eating breakfast at kitchen counter

T-minus 44 days until a new beginning- Math has never been my strong suit or my favorite subject, but it will be about 19 years spent rising and trying to shine in our house. Nineteen years of prepping one, two, or all three of our sons to get up and ready for school. Nineteen years of making breakfast. Nineteen years of making lunches. For those of you in the thick of it right now, you know exactly what I mean. I think my husband Steve and I have it down to a science now. If we had to do it...

Keep Reading

I’m Learning To Let Go of What Was To Embrace What Is

In: Faith, Grown Children, Motherhood

Family of four standing out side in fall

I’ve been waking up in the middle of the night a lot lately. Heart pounding. Mind racing. Ever been there? The house is still, but my thoughts are loud. One night, I finally whispered in the dark, “Lord, what’s this really about?” In His grace, He showed me: I’ve been bracing for a season that’s quickly approaching. One I haven’t exactly welcomed with open arms. They call it the empty nest. I’m a mom of three boys. For over two decades, my life has revolved around carpools, ball games, grocery runs, and Mount-Everest-sized laundry piles. It’s been loud and messy...

Keep Reading

Dear New College Parents: It Gets Easier

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Dorm supplies are center stage at Target, ready for college students and their parents to find with ease as they try to make a dorm room feel like a haven. For the first time in eight years, I do not have a child returning to a “home away from home” on a college campus. In many ways, I find peace with this knowledge; I mean, it is stressful to get a college student and all of their campus possessions moved into a new place during the hottest part of the summer. But in some ways, I find myself a bit...

Keep Reading

I Want His College Experience to Be His Own

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

College boy looking at large building on campus

Back in the day, when I applied for college, my options were limited. By geography. By my GPA. By my ACT score. I didn’t have the accolades that my college-bound son does to make the decision process as difficult as his was. A recruited athlete. A national merit scholar. A rock-solid ACT score. Not bound by us to any geographic region. All the things. I share this not to brag, but rather to paint the picture of the incredible options he had to choose from. And let me say, the decision-making was brutal. It started with ruling out most of...

Keep Reading

I’m Watching Him Become the Man I Prayed He’d Be

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Mom with arm around grown son, view from back

It’s been a hard day. One of those days where everything feels loud. We are renovating our house—it’s time. Actually, it’s way past time. The amount of time that makes you wonder how you lived like this for so long. Twenty years ago, I bought a refrigerator I found on Craigslist for $200. The icemaker didn’t work. The water dispenser was purely decorative. But I babied that thing through two decades of family dinners and midnight snacks. Same with the stove. When my son was three, he climbed upon the stove to retrieve a ball I had confiscated earlier that...

Keep Reading

This Bridge to Empty Nesting is So Bittersweet

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Long walking bridge leading toward ocean

Motherhood. A tremendous, all-encompassing role. One that takes a great deal of energy, time, heart, and soul to do it justice. When you’re raising a child, you become so immersed in their world: babyhood and the exciting firsts; toddlerhood and tantrums; preschool and playdates. Elementary and middle school years are packed with homework, after-school activities, and carpooling. And finally, high school, with its greater autonomy and nerve-wracking firsts, such as driving and staying out late. The years pass simultaneously quickly and slowly. Next thing you know, you’re helping your young adult prepare to fly from the nest. We teach our...

Keep Reading

I’m Falling Into the Goodbye Hole

In: Grown Children, Motherhood

Mother and grown son standing outside smiling for photo

When I first became a mother, I never wanted to leave our firstborn, ever. True story: the first time my husband and I went for a dinner out, we ate as fast as we could, only talked about the baby, and wondered why we had left him with a sitter. We rushed back in 45 minutes, much to the sitter’s surprise. She looked stunned and thought to herself, “These people have to get a life!” That was the first goodbye, and now that our boys are in their 20s, the number of goodbyes keeps piling up. Saying goodbye is one...

Keep Reading

I'll Walk Beside You When Life is Hard, My Friend

Faith

I'll Walk Beside You When Life is Hard, My Friend

It's Hard to Be on the Special Needs Parenting Journey, But You Won't Be Alone

Tough Times

Mama, Love Your Son While You Are Still His Number One Girl

Sappy post warning but if you are a boy mom this one is for you.

I gave away being his number one girl.

Because one day, you will give him away . . .

Your Son Growing Up Will Feel Like the Slowest Breakup You’ve Ever Known” Aches in Every Mother’s Heart

If you liked this, you'll love our book, SO GOD MADE A GRANDMA

Alyssa Becnel

Letting You Go Is Still So Hard

Behind Every Smiling Graduate Is a Mother Letting Go

Watching Your Children Build the Life You Prayed For Is Beautiful

Soon There Will Be No More Breakfasts To Make

I’m Learning To Let Go of What Was To Embrace What Is

Dear New College Parents: It Gets Easier

I Want His College Experience to Be His Own

I’m Watching Him Become the Man I Prayed He’d Be

This Bridge to Empty Nesting is So Bittersweet

I’m Falling Into the Goodbye Hole

Get It Now

So God Made a Mother

Mama, Love Your Son While You Are Still His Number One Girl

*Sappy post warning* but if you are a boy mom this one is for you.

I gave away being his number one girl.

Because one day, you will give him away . . .

If you liked this, you'll love our book, SO GOD MADE A GRANDMA

Letting You Go Is Still So Hard

Behind Every Smiling Graduate Is a Mother Letting Go

Watching Your Children Build the Life You Prayed For Is Beautiful

Soon There Will Be No More Breakfasts To Make

I’m Learning To Let Go of What Was To Embrace What Is

Dear New College Parents: It Gets Easier

I Want His College Experience to Be His Own

I’m Watching Him Become the Man I Prayed He’d Be

This Bridge to Empty Nesting is So Bittersweet

I’m Falling Into the Goodbye Hole

Previous Post

Next Post

You May Also Like

Sappy post warning but if you are a boy mom this one is for you.