Dear Mom:

Why did you make being a “MOM” look so easy!? 

 You cooked probably the best egg burritos known to man and always had a home cooked meal for dinner, even if you had 6 kids and a brand new baby in tow.  It seemed to me that you lived in the kitchen and you loved it!  Little did I know that maybe wiping counters, doing dishes, and sweeping floors probably wasn’t your favorite hobby.

You are also probably the best listener I have ever met.  I can’t imagine having to listen to 7 kids tell about their totally awesome day at school.  You had to keep up with 1^st grade problems all the way up to senior drama.  How was I supposed to know that you actually had a life other then listening to all of us whine and complain?

Mom, you were probably my favorite nurse I have ever had!  I still have all the memories of those lovely bandage changes for my thumb.  I remember thinking how hard-core you were for having to look at my thumb and clean it while I stuck my head under the table because I couldn’t even look at it!  Let’s not forget all the many times you have had to clean up puke, poop, and many other nasty messes 7 kids can make. Yet, that was your job. Not Dad’s, because lets be honest, Dad probably had a weaker stomach then all us kids put together!

Why didn’t you tell me that when I have kids of my own that breakfast for me consist now of toast and if I am lucky I can poor myself some cereal!  Making dinner while having two fussy kids really isn’t as easy as it looks. Heck, making dinner even if you don’t have kids isn’t easy. I remember watching you clean and thinking, “that just looks boring!” Now cleaning is therapeutic for me… I think that’s just me though. It’s nice having a clean kitchen after having a long hard day.  I now see that it wasn’t your hobby but it was maybe a way to relieve stress, or maybe for us to leave you alone. (Because as a kid no one wants to be around mom while she is cleaning or else she would offer us to join her!) 

Mom, why didn’t you tell me to just SHUT UP with all my annoying middle school and high school woes!! Why didn’t you tell me that there were more important things you were worrying about then how my day went? You never told me that maybe you had a hard day and needed someone to listen to you once in awhile.

Mom, why didn’t you warn me that being a “mommy nurse” is probably the hardest job there ever was? Watching my 6-month-old twins go through teething is so heart breaking. (and its just teething! there will be worse things to come!) I feel so helpless trying to soothe them and make them comfortable. Feeling like this brings me back to the time we were told I had cancer, the look on your face is something I will never forget. You started to cry and I thought, “Why is she crying? I am the one with cancer!” Little did I know that your heart was literally breaking inside.  The pain that you suffered watching me, was probably worse then any pain I had to endure. 

Mom you also didn’t tell me how rewarding it is to be a mom. You didn’t tell me how your heart melts into a pile of goo when your babies smile at you for the first time.  You left out the part where you look like a crazy person jumping up and down and clapping you hands when your kids roll over.  I can’t even imagine all the feelings I will get as my kids continue to grow. I see now how all those “hard times” are worth it.

Mom, thank you for being MY mom! I know you really didn’t have a choice in the matter, but I know I wouldn't have it any other way! I have seen just a GLIMPSE of what you have had to endure these past 33 years of being a mom, and it makes me feel so lucky to have you as my mom! I love you now more then I have ever loved you! You are my rock and my example. I hope that one day I can feel proud to know that I was half the mom you were to me!  I love you mom!

P.S. Thank you for not showing me how hard it is to be a mom… because I’m afraid I would have never wanted to be one… and that would have been the worst mistake EVER!