My Mother

Where to begin? I have an amazing mom. I decided that I needed to document a few of the things and experiences that make that statement so concrete to me. I know we all think our moms are the best, but I realized today that I'm not so sure my mom knows I think she is the best.

I recently had my third baby, the same number of kids my mom had. Being a mom is time consuming and exhausting, it is also the greatest thing in the whole world, but I have a partner in parenthood and a fabulous one at that. I think back to my mom raising the three young children all by herself and I am still shocked that she was able to do so with so much patience and love. I had a conversation with my mom when I was 17 that completely changed the way I think. It was the day after I was homecoming queen and I was talking to my mom about how it was moments like that that made me angry at my dad. I felt like it was a big deal in my life, an experience that not very many people get and my dad who should be proud of me and want to be a part of it had no idea who I was as a 17 year old or what experiences I was having. I hadn't seen him in years and years and occasionally that would make me mad. After venting to my mom for a few minutes, she then expressed to me that she had no room for anger towards him because she was busy feeling too sorry for him. She said that he was missing out on knowing and being a part of the three greatest people she had ever known. She talked about moments of our lives that brought her more joy than imaginable and how sad it was that my dad didn't have those moments with us. I remember being amazed thinking about all of the sacrifices my mom made to raise us on her own and how after all those, it was compassion and pity she had for my dad and not anger.

My mom has never been critical of us. She has always made each of us feel like we could do anything and everything we ever dreamed of. She has always made me feel beautiful and intelligent. Even as a little girl my mom made me feel like she trusted the choices I made and I know she still does. She has a way of teaching that isn't belittling, she somehow makes you feel like you knew the right answer all along and she just helped you remember.

My mom has never made us feel like she wanted us to be one way or another, she just always wants us to be exactly who we are. My mom has an incredible ability to care about everyone, whether she knows them or not. I will call my mom and mention a friend of ours who is sick or struggling and every time, without fail, my mom will call me back the next day or 2 to see how that friend is doing. She won't just casually bring it up, that is her purpose in calling and you know she has been thinking about that person since you told her. She is compassionate and giving; if there is something she has that you like she would give it to you in a heartbeat.
Hands down my mom is the funniest person I know. She has always been willing to laugh at herself and at life. She is constantly making life more fun for everyone around her. My mom is the kind of person you never get sick of being around and no matter how much time you get to spend with her, it isn't enough. My mom has always been a fun mom, the mom that gets covered in sand building a sand castle with you at the beach, the mom that plays hide and go seek with you after working a 12 hour shift through the night, the mom that starts a water fight in the house by pouring a bottle of water on you while you are hanging out on the couch, that's my mom.
Now my mom is a grandma, and she is the best at that too. My children are borderline obsessed with their Grandma Coco. She has a magical way of being with them and praising them. She makes play-dough fingernails for them, crawls around on the ground acting like a horse with them, she will read books to them for hours and tell them stories while snuggling them in bed, she will color and paint with them all day. When my mom leaves our house my children are more confident and self assured having spent time with her.
I found this quote and I couldn't say it better.
"On Mother's Day I have written a poem for you. In the interest of poetic economy and truth, I have succeeded in concentrating my deepest feelings and beliefs into two perfectly crafted lines: You're my mother, I would have no other!" ~Forest Houtenschil


HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY! I love you mom.