Disclaimer: I do not own Back to the Future.

May 8, 2011
10:10 AM PDT

Jennifer Jane Parker McFly sighed, as she was sprawled on her bed, looking through some old photo albums. In a sense, it felt like just yesterday that little Marlene Stella McFly was born. It just felt bittersweet to think that her daughter was a few months she was turning fourteen, and she was going through a difficult stage of her life.

Her younger child, Martin Seamus McFly Jr, was just a little over one month of turning thirteen. Even though her two children were less than ten months apart, Marlene had a tendency to act as if she was a lot older than her brother. It sure did not mean that her son acted immature - but, rather, her daughter tended to be very high-strung.

She then glanced at a page of her two children running through a water sprinkler. The children were ten and nine. That was a little less than three years ago, but they really seemed to be much smaller. She could not imagine Marlene doing such a thing, now.

She wondered what her children were doing, now. Marlene, without a doubt, was still sound asleep. Marty Jr, very likely, was watching cartoons in the living room. It really felt strange to think of how different her two children were. While her son was not as much of an early riser as he used to be, he still was not the type to sleep until noon.

It almost seemed like just yesterday, when she herself was a teenager. She thought fondly of the day she first met her future husband, Marty McFly Sr. It sure was hard to believe that it was almost 28 years ago. Indeed, time really seemed to go so fast.

She mused over how her son was really beginning to more resemble his father, when she first met the elder Marty. He also simply shared his father's love of hard rock. He quite enjoyed everything from Led Zeppelin to Huey Lewis and The News to Metallica to Foo Fighters to Avenged Sevenfold. Marty Jr also really loved his father's music.

While her children were usually well-behaved, they did sometimes act naughty. Such as the one time, when Marty Jr was ten years old, he and Harmony Brown ended up sneaking off to a Foo Fighters concert. She still recalled just how angry she became, as she threatened to ground her son for an entire month. Her husband rather found the punishment to be harsh - so she had, reluctantly, decreased it to a weekend.

Of course, she was very concerned for her children's safety - which was a major part of why her son's disobedience had just angered her so. She knew that a rock concert just was not a place for young children to attend alone. Harmony's parents were also not pleased by it. The children were very lucky that nothing bad happened to them.

In the end, she understood that her son and Harmony just happened to be huge fans of the Foo Fighters - so, soon after her anger had cooled, she opted to explain to her son why she had refused to let him attend. Her son understood, and he apologized.

She and her husband were never the type of parents to say "no", simply for the sake of exerting authority. They only ever said "no", whenever they had good reasons for doing so - and their children understood that. They always tried to be fair and just.

She thought back to when Marty Jr was six years old, and she had to come to school to pick him up. He had worn a Led Zeppelin tee-shirt to school, that day - and he had been criticized by his substitute teacher for liking the band. The teacher told him that he should really be listening to music that other children his age listened to, instead.

Marty Jr reacted badly to the criticism, as he proceeded to throw a temper tantrum - and he even kicked the teacher. As the teacher dragged him to the principal's office, he was getting increasing hysterical. Once there, he had to wait in a locked room.

She still remembered hearing her son bawl loudly, as she stepped into the principal's office. The teacher had quite a large bruise on her stockinged leg, and she raged at Jennifer about how "that boy needs some serious discipline". Jennifer was horrified.

When she finally got her son to calm down, he told her what the teacher had said to him. The teacher confirmed what Marty Jr said really was true, and she insisted that he really "did not need to be listening to classic rock". Jennifer protested with saying that her son liked classic rock, and was then told that it was "not normal behaviour".

Jennifer and the principal had both sympathized with Marty Jr, and agreed that it was so wrong of the teacher to criticize her son's musical preferences. However, they also agreed that it was just wrong of Marty Jr to simply react in the manner as he did. In a gentle manner, they had discussed with him some alternate options for him to take.

From that incident, Marty Jr learned that grown ups also are not perfect - and that they also do naughty things, sometimes. He simply agreed that, if he ever had any more issues with his teachers - he would talk with her about it, after coming home.

She then thought of Marlene, and her daughter tended to not always be vocal about what was on her mind. It was simply hard for her to know how to deal her daughter's moody spells, when she would be silent and act as if she was in a catatonic state.

Her son, thankfully, did not have that problem. Whenever there was something on his mind, he was never afraid to share it. She did quite love how her son trusted her, and she hoped that it would never change. Usually, Marty Jr was really an easy-going and friendly person. However, he also was not someone to let bullies push him around.

Jennifer sighed, as she turned the photo album to where her children's school pictures were. Marlene's were all in a row, as were Marty Jr's. She thought of how, each year, the children looked just a little older. It brought a very bittersweet pang to her heart.

Sometimes, she wondered what it would be like to have a third child. Even though she considered her children to be a blessing - they were also, sometimes, really a handful. Even so, she most certainly would not dream of trading her children in for anything.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Jennifer swallowed, as she walked over to the door. On the other side, there stood Marty Jr - along with, much to her surprise, Marlene. She then noticed that the two of them were holding a wrapped present.

"Happy Mothers Day!" Marty Jr called out, cheerfully. He then hugged his mother, as he added, "In celebration of the special occasion, we actually decided to treat you to brunch... at Daria's Diner. I, uh, figured that we should go there by eleven o'clock."

"Which is why I got up, fairly early," added Marlene. "Listen, Mom, I realize I've been acting... a bit difficult... lately. The thing is, Mom, I still really love you - even though I'll often really act embarrassed to... to be seen with you in public. So, on this special day, I thought I'd make it up to you. My brother and I made this present... for you."

"I understand, honey," Jennifer replied, as she kissed her daughter on the cheek. "I'm quite well aware of what you're going through." She opened up the little package, and was shocked by what she saw. "Precious Moments," she read, softly. "For You, Mom."

Jennifer slowly started to flip through the pages, which numbered in fifty. Each page just contained a different theme, where her children wrote about moments that they remembered. She felt so touched, as tears filled her eyes. The gift was so beautiful.

"Thank you, Marly and Junior," Jennifer choked out, softly. "I'll have to keep this book on my nightstand. It sure was thoughtful of you to do this. Y'know, I was just thinking about how you kids are... growing up. The thing is, no matter how old you get, you... you always will be my children. I must say, you kids certainly did go the extra mile."

"Well, it's Mother's Day," Marty Jr replied, as he flashed a lopsided smile. "Believe it or not, the book was actually Marly's idea. We spent all last week, working on this. I just want you to know how I appreciate you, and how much you've influenced my life."

"As he said," Marlene agreed, smiling. "I promise you, Mom, if any of my friends end up seeing me with you at Daria's Diner - I'm sure not gonna care, one bit. Today is a special occasion, and I... I want to think you, Mom, for being very patient with me."

"That's my job," Jennifer replied, smiling, "as a mother." She stretched out her arms, as she said, "C'mon, you two. How about giving your mom a great big hug?" Her two children, instantly,threw their arms around her. She hugged back, as she added, "In fact, we should probably start getting ready to go. I see that you're all dressed up."

"Yeah, Mom," agreed Marlene, softly. "They probably won't hold our reservations, all day. It wasn't easy for me to get up when I did - but I figured that, for the occasion, it was worth it. So, uh, what about Dad? I don't see him around. Where did he go?"

"He's spending some time with Dr. Brown," explained Jennifer. "I imagine that, when Father's Day comes around, you'll also do something special for him. Well, I am quite beginning to feel hungry. I was planning to make us some coffee cake, but since..."

"We can have coffee cake, next week," suggested Marty Jr, smiling. "I do quite love you, Mom. Y'know, I still simply remember the time you yelled at me - when Harmony and I sneaked off to see the Foo Fighters. I remember how rather scared that made me feel, but I also... I understand how scared to death for me you might have felt."

"Yeah, you simply did give me a big fright," Jennifer agreed, smoothing out her son's dress shirt. "That's all in the past, though. Every day, I think of how thankful I am... to have two very healthy children. Well, how about we go blow this popsicle stand?"

Jennifer smiled, as her children laughed. As the trio then began to make their way out of the house, she pondered over quite how lucky she was. She had a very supportive husband and two precious children. She sure would not dream of trading in her life for anything else. Being a mother often was hard work, but it was also a great blessing.