Mother's Day

Ah, Mother's Day. A day just for moms, just to let them know how much we appreciate them. As if that were actually an attainable feat, as if there were enough words to adequately describe what our mothers have done for us.

My children woke me up before six this morning. I went upstairs and climbed into bed with them the moment I heard them on the monitor, hoping to coax them back to sleep until at least the sun came up. No dice. But because it was Mother's Day, I spared their lives and did an hour of yoga instead.

It's amazing what being alone for an hour can do for the soul. The cup of coffee graciously provided by my husband also helped.

Tonight at dinner I asked Annie to tell me all about, well, me and here's what I got:

Mommy's favorite color: green
Mommy's age: 59 (she's fired)
Mommy's favorite thing to eat: rice and "pomatoes"
Mommy's job: "busy" (yep, that pretty much sums it up)
Annie's favorite thing about Mommy: "I love you"

Man, the little one knows how to earn her keep around here. She helped me make dinner tonight and the whole time she was like, "Mommy, I cooking with you!" and "Mommy, we cooking together! This be fun!" I've decided that people have second babies just so there will still be someone to love them by the time the first-born has developed opinions and turned snarky.

I was reflecting on motherhood today. By that, I mean I was reading the various posts everyone has been throwing up on facebook, things like "12 Things Every Mother Really Wants" (on the list: silence, to be left alone, a vacation that doesn't involve babysitting, silence, peeing alone, silence...)

It seems like motherhood falls into two general camps.

There are the moms who are all in. They nurture. They make homemade babyfood and crafts and stimulating conversation and snacks in the shape of animals. They want the best for their children and aren't about to apologize for it. Motherhood is a joy and fulfillment and what they were made to do and do well. They care and care hard. And truth be told, they can be a little judgey about it (admit it, you are...)

Then there are the moms who just can't. They're fine with the "world's okayest mom" label and almost seem to go out of their way to prove their in-the-trenches survival-mode mentality. They're not treasuring every moment, they're actually bemoaning every moment. We get it, motherhood is hard. The days are loooong. It's cool not to like your kids because, well, kids are annoying little terrorists and gosh darn it you are not about to negotiate with terrorists. And truth be told, they can get just as judgey about those earnest, Pinteresting mamas (you know you do it...)

And I'm wondering, what happened to the mamas who are just trying their best? We don't have it all together, but if we're honest with ourselves, we're not half bad. We juggle work and mommying the best we can. Our house might not be Martha Stewart's, but it's not a pig sty either. Our kids aren't eating McDonald's every night (just on Sunday afternoons before the grocery store run). Everyone gets one extracurricular activity, we brush our teeth most nights, there is some sort of vegetable on the dinner plate five out of seven times (even if it means we count fries as legitimate vegetable products). We're not ashamed to say we love our kids and our jobs as mothers, but we're equally okay admitting it's wine-o-clock somewhere. We're not enjoying every minute, but we're seizing the moments that are and etching them on our hearts.

That's the mama I want to be. I want to be honest about the realities of this season of littles in my home, the good and the bad. The bad is funnier, and perhaps more relatable. But the good is just as important. Let's encourage one another, let's be real with each other, and for gosh sake let's share the whine wine with each other!

Here's to my mamas, the ones who have mothered me and the ones who are mothering next to me. I see you. You are awesome.