Mom's Little Angel: Stories of the Special Bond Between Mothers and Daughters

By Gregory E. Lang

A Chance to Say Thank You

The bond between a mother and a daughter is a constant in an ever-changing world. Though the relationship evolves with each passing year—from caretaker to role model, teacher to best friend—the connection remains an irreplaceable part of our lives.

In tribute to this special relationship, bestselling author Gregory Lang shares real-life stories of mothers and daughters that celebrate why a daughter needs a mom. With inspirational quotes throughout and photos of real moms with their daughters, Mom's Little Angel is the perfect way for both moms and daughters to say thank you to the special person in their life. Empowering mothers to embrace the role they play in a daughter's life and reminding daughters of the never-ending support they receive from their mothers, this timeless keepsake will be treasured forever.

A perfect gift for:

• Her wedding day
• Mother's Day
• Birthdays
• Graduation
• The day she learns she's expecting a daughter of her own

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Oct 6, 2009
• ISBN: 9780061974854

Gregory E. Lang

Gregory E. Lang is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who has sold over 2 million copies of his books, including Daddy's Little Girl, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad, and Why a Daughter Needs a Mom. He has a Ph.D. in child and family development and lives in Atlanta with his wife, Jill, and their two daughters, Meagan and Linley.

Book preview

Mom’s Little Angel

Stories of the Special Bond Between Mothers and Daughters

Gregory E. Lang

TO THE WOMEN IN MY LIFE—

     JILL, MEAGAN, AND LINLEY

He that would the daughter win,

must with the mother first begin.

—ENGLISH PROVERB

Contents

Epigraph

Author’s Note

Introduction

Mom’s Shadow

To See the World

A Perfect Wedding

The Mothers’ Circle

Birthday Surprise

Fraidy Cat

Momma Magic

A Matching Pair

Flintstone Feet

Notes of Love

Answered Prayers

A Legacy of Letters

Reunion

Special Breakfast

Forget-Me-Nots

Like Mother, Like Daughter

Praying for Mazol

Just One Hour

Chocolate Promise

A True Gift

Pretty Dresses

The Sweetest Reunion

Angels Whisper

A Girl Scout Sacrifice

A Dream Come True

Bonded for Life

A Daughter’s Hero

Letting Go

Epilogue

Tell Me Your Stories

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Credits

Copyright

About the Publisher

Author’s Note

This book is based on a collection of stories about mothers and daughters. Simply put, I could not have written it without the generous permission of daughters and moms to tell their personal and heartwarming stories. They also granted me permission to edit their stories for the sake of consistency in creating a book that would be enjoyable for all to read.

Stories were sent to me by traditional mail and e-mail, collected through my website, or told to me in recorded interviews, both face-to-face and by telephone. As you might guess, the writing and storytelling styles I encountered varied considerably. Sometimes English was not the teller’s primary language, and in those cases editorial changes were all the more essential to create a brief but readable story for my readers.

I revised all but a few of the written and recorded stories in order to get to the heart of the story with as much economy and emotion as I believed necessary to produce an engaging chapter. In every case, however, I stayed true to the original mother-daughter story, even sending many edited stories back to the storyteller for review and input. I hope that those who read their own stories in the following pages will be satisfied with how they are told here, woven together with other positive messages about mother-daughter relationships.

I photographed family and friends to illustrate this book. No relationship between the models and the stories is implied by the placement of a photograph before or after a particular story. Finally, real names were not used in this book in order to respect the privacy of all the persons portrayed within each story.

Introduction

Almost immediately after the publication of my first book, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad: 100 Reasons, which I wrote for my daughter Meagan, I began to receive e-mail from readers asking, What about moms? Some were simply curious about whether a daughter-mom book was on my radar screen; others were rather indignant that I had not written it first. All agreed that mothers and daughters share a special relationship that deserves to be honored in a book.

Of course, I was well aware of the importance of moms in every child’s life—after all, I have a mother of my own. Memories of my childhood always include the many things my mother did to make sure I was well cared for and happy. She cooked my favorite foods, tended to my cuts and bruises, drove me to baseball practice, helped with my homework assignments, wiped away my tears, and endured the existential drama of my teen years, all the while making sure that not one of her other four children was overlooked.

The truth be told, my mother did many things for me—most remembered, some forgotten—that taken one at a time may seem somewhat inconsequential. But when all those things she did are taken together, the sum total staggers the mind. While I cannot think of a single superhero moment, I can think of thousands of little moments with my mom that added up like coins in a jar. Neither I nor my siblings can fathom the number and range of ways in which our mother influenced the outcome of our lives.

Further proof of the importance of moms, especially in a daughter’s life, came to me courtesy of my child Meagan. She and I enjoyed a close and playful relationship when she was a little girl, but things began to change as she entered her teen years. Soon it was her mother she looked to first and shared secrets with. It wasn’t me but her mother who became the parent Meagan looked to for consolation, protection, and understanding.

Theirs was a language of shoes, seasonal clothing, reality television, and desserts that contained not a single calorie. Their relationship was one that at times I could not understand and was even jealous of, and yet I understood clearly that the two of them needed and deserved it. Eventually, then, I wrote the book Why a Daughter Needs a Mom: 100 Reasons for Becky, my ex-wife, and my daughter Meagan.

And just as had happened after my first book was released, letters from mothers and daughters began appearing in my e-mail. Daughters wrote of how their mothers had always been there for them, holding their hand when they were afraid, tucking them in at night, baking green bread or cookies for Saint Patrick’s Day, mending Barbie clothes, helping with weddings, and coaching them during labor, never skipping a beat while wiping away perspiration or calming a hyperventilating husband. I read tales of mothers who sent change-of-address notices to Santa and the Easter Bunny—and mothers who set aside the enjoyment of their retirement years to care for a sick grandbaby with needs too great for an ordinary day care center to handle.

I also sat back and thought about my wife and how she has helped me not only with my stepdaughter, Linley, but with Meagan too. Jill has a talent for bringing a laugh to tense moments, for teaching me to ignore the pesky things the girls do that used to get my goat, and for gently advising me in a way that sinks