There are alot of important people in my life, one of them is Amy.Back in September 2002, I moved to Illinois with my boyfriend (now husband).  I had never in my life been to Illinois, and I didn't have any family there at all.  I was only there for 2 weeks, and it was my birthday.  Rob called his dad's girlfriend (now his wife), Amy, on the day before my birthday, and he told her that I was feeling lonely and sad, and that I missed my family very much.  I had never met her because we lived an hour south of them, and we had only been there for a few weeks.  I didn't know that he had called her the morning before, I found out later on.  On the day of my 21st birthday, he told me we were going to drive up there to meet the rest of his family.  I felt really down, and didn't feel like going.  But, I got in the car anyway- complaining the whole time (I did that alot back then).  When we got to their house, I was shocked to find that she had made one of my favorite dinners, lasagna, and a big chocolate chip cookie, that was decorated with frosting for my birthday cake.  I love those kind of 'cookie cakes'!!!  She had never met me before, and yet she went to all that trouble just for me!  It's a birthday I will never forget.  We spent the night there, and drove home the next morning.  I found out I was pregnant with Jonathan that afternoon.  Amy sent over maternity clothes, gave me alot of baby clothes and books on pregnancy.  She gave me a baby shower, and made a very cute cake to celebrate.  When I went into labor in March, she made the drive down to the hospital to be there.  She stayed until just after Jonathan was born, taking pictures of his first moments.  She doesn't know how much that means to me.  I had alot of complications resulting from my emergency c-section, and I don't remember anything about his first 24 hours of life.  I didn't get to see Rob holding our son for the very first time, which is one of the things I was looking forward to the most during my pregnancy.  But, she got pictures of that moment- pictures that mean the world to me.  She came to see me a few days later while I was still in the hospital recovering from a second surgery (I was bleeding internally from the c-section).  She took more pictures, held Jonathan and fed him, changed his diaper, and sat with me so I wouldn't be lonely- Rob was at school that day, taking his finals.  The only pictures that anyone took of me holding Jonathan from before he was 5 months old were taken by Amy that day.  No one else ever bothered to take any.  I have the only two pictures.  You won't find me in any other pictures holding my baby when he was that small.  When we got home from the hospital a week later, I walked in the door of our house to find that she had given me a baby swing, a Boppy nursing pillow that I really wanted, a bouncer seat, and a few other little odds and ends that make taking care of a newborn a whole lot easier.  If she hadn't given me that Boppy pillow, I would not have been able to hold my son.  I couldn't lift him at all, and I had staples in my stomach from the surgery.  If it weren't for her, things would have been alot harder for me.  Jonathan loved that swing, by the way.We stayed in Illinois until Jonathan was 11 months old.  During that time, she bought him clothes and toys.  She made sure that he had everything he needed.  For his first Halloween, she made him a costume- he was Eeyore.  She's very talented when it comes to sewing, crafts, baking, and cooking delicious meals.  I still have that costume, and I refuse to part with it.She officially became my mother-in-law on February 14, 2004.  She was Jonathan's grandma long before that.  She has always been so good to me, and always made me feel like I was part of the family from the very beginning.  Because of her, Illinois wasn't such a lonely place after all.  It's because of her that I miss living there.  Well, it's also her delicous food that I miss!She will always be special to me.  She has such a kind and giving heart, and I am so thankful knowing that she and I are family, and always will be.  Some women complain about their mother-in-law.  The only complaint that I have is that we live so far apart.