Happy Mother's Day

Just wanted to wish all of my mommy friends a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

Mother's Day always makes me reflect on what being a mom has meant for me, and so I thought I'd share a few things from the past year. Over the past year, being a mom has meant a lot of hugs/kisses/snuggles with my 4 year old, but not so many any more from my 11 year old. It has been embarrassing my 11 year old in carpool line by yelling out "I said 'I love you'" when she doesn't say it back as she gets out of the car. Being a mom this year has been driving back all the way across town to fetch the $400 retainer that was left under a friend's trampoline. It's also been trying to get over the fact that my oldest has hit puberty, wears my clothes and shoes, and reminds me daily that she is as tall as me (which really is not that big an accomplishment considering how incredibly short I am!). Mommyhood this year has been major bedtime battles, some of which I am ashamed to say I lost. Bubble baths (for the kids, not me!), sleepovers, lots of ketchup (what is up with kids and ketchup?!), about 4,000 loads of laundry (and that's just one week!), morning meltdowns when time is already crunched, bedtime stories, "alligator cereal", report cards, playing outside, adopting baby chicks from school, lots of Tinkerbell (I can quote the movie as well as my 4 year old can!), growth spurts and having to buy both children whole new wardrobes at the same time as a result (of course, right after I had already bought their winter clothes!). Being a mommy this year has been eating a lot of cold meals in restaurants because Emmy just has to go to the bathroom right before the food comes to the table - without fail, every time! It has also been sidewalk chalk, planting flowers, ice cream and cake for breakfast, princess parties, field trips where horses tried to steal my camera, Sparky and Peanut, bedroom makeovers, giggles, Tech Fair, Science Fair, Media Festival, and Issy's new kitten scratching my ankles from under the couch.

I'm also a mommy to several other creatures, including three dogs, two cats, and seven chicks. Sadly, over the past year we had to say goodbye to a pet rat (RIP Brisby) and a beloved cat, Memphis. As a mommy to all of these babies I have cleaned up a lot of pet accidents (puke, poop, pee, you know, all the 'p' words), built a chicken coop with my husband, scooped cat boxes, made a few vet trips, laughed at the chicks, laid on the dogs, taken some walks, lost a fish (literally, lost it, never found it), vacuumed (a lot!), battled a few fleas (and unlike the bedtime battles, I was victorious!), thanked the cats for the presents left on the doorstep (fellow kitty owners - you know what I'm talking about), and endless looks of love and admiration (at least from the dogs, the cats only care that I feed them!).

Really, I could go on and on.....

Being a mom is GREAT!