Happy Mother's Day!

4 Generations - November 2007

Gramma Pat, Mom, Jaden, and Me

Mother's Day is almost here and I couldn't be happier! When I sit back and think about it, I seriously feel like the luckiest mom in the world. Jaden may not be cooperative all the time and she may have her "terrible 2" moments, but she is my world!! I can not imagine how I survived 25 years without her. Now, as you know, I will soon have the pleasure of being a mom to TWO precious little girls. Two girls I know will grow to be great moms someday too. Mom once painted me a tile with the saying, "Mothers and daughters become closer when daughters become mothers." I've yet to hear a statement more true. I wouldn't be HALF the mom I am today if it wasn't for my mom. She's been my rock. I know I can (and have) call her ANY time I need anything. I've called her many times in the middle of the night when I was at the end of my rope with a screaming child. Even though there was nothing really she could do that I couldn't, she always offered to drive down and help out. Most times I just needed that reassurance that "this too shall pass." Thank you so much for EVERYTHING you have done for me, Mom! I love you!!

When I think about what being a mom means to me, I of course think of the obvious: unconditional love, support, encouragement, etc. I also think of how much my family has grown and changed in two years! Mike and I talk all the time about how much we love being parents and about our hopes and dreams for our kids. We literally hold their future in our own hands. It breaks my heart to hear about parents that hurt their own children. It pains me to go to the store in the middle of winter and see some poor child without a hat on, or to see a baby being held between two screaming mad parents. The choices we make for ourselves are also choices made for our children.

What does it mean to be a mom? To me, being a mom means dropping everything I am doing to lay in bed and stroke the hair of my daughter when she finds it hard to fall asleep. Being a mom means taking an interest in EVERYTHING she wants to share with me even if it is the 150th time! Being a mom means not buying new shoes and clothes all the time because I'd rather buy a new Arthur book. Being a mom means letting my shows get backed up on the DVR because I'd rather watch the same episode of The Penguins of Madagascar every night after dinner. Being a mom means going to bed early on Friday nights so I have enough energy to keep up with a 2-year-old on Saturday. Being a mom means experiencing a pang of fear in my stomach every time she wants to go down the "BIG slide" by herself. Being a mom means not counting the calories in the cookie that was given to me by her. To me, it is the everyday things that make being a mom so special. A friend of mine once said she didn't know how she would ever survive being pregnant because she didn't know if she could go nine months without drinking. I told her if that was what she was worried about, she was not ready to be a mom. Another friend told me that if she were me, she would take the car seat out of her car every time she didn't have "the kid" because it would be embarrassing. I consider it a badge on honor. Another friend said she couldn't wait to be a mom. When I asked her why, she said it was so she could dress her baby really cute. Yeah... good reason.

To all of you moms out there, I wish a very happy Mother's Day! Enjoy your kids, for they are the reason you are who you are... MOM!!