Happy Mother's Day
It is once again that day of the year when we honor all
those precious ladies in our lives whether they are with us now or they have
proceeded us into the afterlife. It is a long running joke that Mom's work 364
days a year and have one off but even then they still work. Being a mom is a
tough job and let me tell ya…no one told me how tough it would be. So let us
take a stroll down memory lane and then praise the women who have nurtured us
in our lives.
My earliest memories of my Mom come from her holding me,
making no bake oatmeal cookies and her laugh. She has this amazing laugh that
just seeps into your soul. You can instantly tell if she's giving someone the
polite "I really don't like you or what you just said" laugh and the
one that is all wrapped up in mothery goodness.
My mom is pretty damn amazing. She can run circles around
me, out cook me even on my best day and has so much talent. She has given me a
wealth of advice over the years. She was my mother first and foremost and now
she has become a mother and a friend. I can tell her anything and know that she
will tell me if it is a crap idea or it is one worth pursuing. She has been the
referee between my siblings and myself for 36 years.
My mother has also been a bane in my own attempts at child
rearing. She embraced being a Gammy very easily because she knew her time had
finally come. She would be getting the ultimate paybacks. She became the
greatest thing since toast when it came to her grandchildren. Don't like
dinner? Well she would fix them something they wanted. (Note: Sasha, Courtney
and myself were always told to either eat it or go hungry. I tell the girls
that now.)
Chocolate for breakfast? Sure. Oh you want to eat a bunch of
sugar, take no nap and then go home to your moms? Absolutely!
A year or two ago, when dealing with my own teens, I called
her and Dad to apologize to them. My words exactly? "You were right. I was
wrong." I didn't have to say much more. They knew.
When I became a Mom I thought I would do everything the
right way. I read books. I talked to friends. I thought I had it in the bag.
Kennedy came along and I pushed her to do everything bigger, better and faster.
She was walking by 5 months and bottle and potty trained by 1. She was very
cognizant and had an incredible vocabulary by 2. She was also spoiled rotten.
Maesin came along roughly 1 year and 3 weeks from Kennedy's
birth. (No it was not on purpose.) That time around? Uh yeah. We are lucky
Maesin is walking and talking today. I was so laid back with her. I didn't rush
anything and probably, truth be told, didn't even make a conscious effort.
Kennedy was Type A personality from the moment she caterwauled into my life.
Maesin was the laid back siesta.
Now kids are tricky creatures. As a Mom I get to see all of
my best traits in the girls. As a Mom I get to see all of the worst traits. My
abilities are theirs and my liabilities are with them as well. I am afraid one
is too demanding of herself, as well as so very brash, and I fear that the
other will never take a stance in the world, that she is too laid back. They
are two polar opposites and I see parts of myself in each one.
When you have children you get a wealth of advice from
people, friends, strangers and books. You crank up the worry meter to a 10 and
become convinced that this world is going to harm your children. You sanitize
everything. Then they come and you want to kick some people's asses. They
warned you about the terrible 2's but they didn't say squat about how little
kids will play with poop. They didn't warn you that you will change shirts
often because your precious will upchuck on you.
They also didn't tell you that your heart become so
incredibly fragile. If they are sick you stay up all night. Heaven forbid they
have to stay in a hospital because you will cry each night as you sleep on the
little bench in the room, praying that they get better soon. You sit back
silently as they grow and have to learn to defend themselves from others. You
would give every last breath to protect them.
Mom's are the most incredible creatures on the planet. Just
when you are going along in life and think your heart cannot become any bigger…it
does. And I want to point out that having children is not necessarily a
prerequisite to being a Mom. You do not have to be related to someone by blood
to have an incredible influence over them. You may simply be a friend of
someone who has a child. The only requirement is love.
Here is to you! Mom's of the world take a collective sigh,
take a long soak in the tub and remember that no one gets out of this alive.
Your kids won't be the death of you (hopefully) and you will earn each and
every wrinkle that comes with the territory. Your favorite outfit can be
replaced when destroyed by the kids and you may even have a clean house now and
again.
Mom I love you to the moon and back and I'm very glad you
survived my teenage years. Once again let me just say that, "You were
right and I was wrong. About pretty much everything. Oh and thank you for not
giving us to the gypsies."
Very well put!
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