It's Hard To Enjoy Mother's Day Without Being Mom

For years I spent my mother's days moping about the Sunday dishes that would inevitably greet me come Monday morning, and I would dread the mess around the house that would accompany those dishes. It kind of turned me into a mothers day grinch. My family tried hard, had good intentions, and created huge messes trying to give me my day off. The kids would cry because Dad would do their hair and it would pull, Dad would be frustrated because he was surrounded by total chaos, while trying to create the oasis I expected. I was giving up on mothers day...until...

One mothers day I was taking a panoramic shot of the whirlwind in my home and decided mothers day wasn't about getting a break from being mom but instead mothers day was about being a mother. I began to experiment on this new thought. I started doing dishes, to which my husband protested. I explained to him that I wanted to help and it was mothers day so he should let me do what I wanted. :) I helped get kids ready, helped prepare meals, and played games with my kids. Something amazing happened, I loved that mothers day. I didn't do everything I usually do. When I wanted to put my feet up I did, if I wanted a special treat I got it, and if I wanted to read a good book I did. The point, everyone, especially me began to enjoy mothers day when I acted like a mother.

 I have had the opportunity to be with my own mom this mothers day and even today she mothers me. Years ago when I was a little girl I remember my mom staying up with me through the night. She held me on the couch because I had an awful ear ache. Sometime through that night my ear drained and the pain eased. I fell asleep on my moms lap. Twenty five years later before I went to sleep with an ear ache, very late at night, my mom hunted down the heating pad, made sure I had ear drops, and scoured her cupboards for pain relievers to assure my comfort through the night.

I imagine as my kids grow my mothers day will change but once a mother always a mother. I do take a break to get my relaxation but I find something wonderful in just being mom.