Love You Forever

From the moment you found out you were going to be a mother, you knew you would love that baby forever. 

There just seems to be no stronger bond than that of mother love, and to celebrate mothers this month, a recommended read for mom to share with her child, or a perfect gift for that new or expectant mother most definitely has to be "Love You Forever" by Robert Munsch. 

I dare you to read this book without shedding a tear, as a mother instills a touching tradition in her son's life that will last a lifetime and beyond.

"I'll love you forever / I'll love you for always / As long as I'm living / My baby you'll be," sings mama to her newborn baby, then to her adventurous toddler wrapped up in toilet paper and to her growing, messy, dirt covered tween-- every night, the same routine, the same song. 

As a wild teenager, who goes to bed later than she does, mama still gets up in the middle of the night and holds her son and sings “their” song as he sleeps. 

The years pass and the boy, now a man, moves out on his own.

This doesn't stop mama. She puts a ladder on the roof of her car, drives across town and climbs to her son's bedroom window. She finds him sleeping and again cradles him in her arms and sings the now familiar song, "I'll love you forever / I'll love you for always / As long as I'm living / My baby you'll be."  A mother’s love covers millions of miles and goes just across town.

The illustrations in "Love You Forever" are humorous, touching and completely capture the tenderness of this heart-warming story. The pictures in this story are drawn by Sheila McGraw.

Time marches on as it always does and the boy marries and plans to start a family of his own.  On the other side of town, mama has grown older with time, as people do. 

She becomes ill and then suddenly you read, "I'll love you forever / I'll love you for always / As long as I'm living / My mother you'll be." 

Illustrated is the boy holding his ailing, frail, mama in his arms and singing their song to her.  She has taught him well.  Tenderness, compassion, kindness, and love are all ever-present in this illustration of son and mother sharing an amazing moment (insert tears here).

At the end of the story, the boy, now a parent himself, is shown holding his own baby and singing, "I'll love you forever / I'll love you for always / As long as I'm living / My baby you'll be."  

Children love this story because of the humorous pictures of the boy as he grows, the loving relationship shown between the mom and the son and the familiar, repetitive refrain of the song sung by the mother. 

They will ask to read it again and again. Moms love this story because it shows how the impact of a special moment shared between mother and son each day can impact their children for the rest of their lives. 

Happy Mother’s Day!