One day I was talking about my children to a group of people. My children are my favorite topic and I can talk about them for days, sometimes to the extreme. All of a sudden someone said to me, “My children are not like yours!” I was caught by surprise and said my children are no better than anyone else’s children, but in my eyes they are the greatest.

I remember the love and joy I felt carrying each of my six children. I laughed and talked to them all night while waiting for them to make their entrance into the world. I told them how special they were and how their father and I were looking forward to meeting them. It was some of the best times of my life.

My kids were no angels, they got in tons of trouble growing up, TONS! There were six of them — three boys and three girls — so you can imagine that their father and I had our hands full. As soon as we straighted out one, another one was getting into something. There were times when all six were on punishment at the same time, sometimes for the entire summer! I believe those times are what drew them close to each other. Since they could not go outside and play, they had no choice but to learn to play with each other, which to this day has forged an unbreakable bond between all six.

Nothing in this world gives me more joy than my family, and I am not ashamed to shout that from the rooftop. I believe all parents should be proud of their children and love them unconditionally. So, to the person who told me their children are not like mine, you are correct, but that does not mean that they are not special in their own right. Shout it to the rooftop!

Mary Simmons is a columnist for The K-V Dispatch. She can be reached at ABoxofLoveKVD@gmail.com