Oh, Mother!

Recently, I was given the best compliment of my life on two separate occasions by two little kids. The first one was a little girl I had spent most of the day with. We were riding in the car together when out of nowhere she said, "You're baby is so lucky to have you as a momma." My hormonal pregnant self immediately teared up as I thought about how lucky and humbled I am to be able to be her "momma."

Being pregnant has really gotten me thinking about the mom I have been so lucky to have been blessed with. When I was younger I had a teacher once ask if anyone knew what the word dote meant. Everyone else was shaking their heads, so I raised my hand and said it's how my mom treats me - she dotes on me. Even though there were six of us, she was always there to dote on each of us. I'm not sure who my siblings would consider the most spoiled (probably me!), but I think she has spoiled each of us in different ways. She has always been very conscious of our individuality and our specific needs.

I can still remember laying on the floor with her learning the alphabet and how to write my name. I remember reading in her lap and playing with her hair. I remember painting fingernails and watching her put my hair in buns. I remember art projects and baby dolls and endless shopping trips. I remember her teaching Joy School (homeschool Pre-K). I remember her going back to school for her Master's and learning about X and Y chromosomes and listening to tape recordings of her professors' lectures just so I could sit with her while she studied. I remember her never turning me away from her bed and how she would often fall asleep during prayers. I remember wanting to be a teacher because she was one, but most of all wanting to be a mommy just like her. And all of that had to have been before I was even in first grade.

Now as I am becoming a mother myself I am so grateful for the mother I have had. I am relaxed and excited about all the change that is coming with the birth of our little girl. I keep thinking about how prepared I feel and how it is all because of my mother. She taught me how to hold a baby, how to feed them, how to burp them, how to change a diaper, how to read to them, how to talk to them, how to soothe them, and how to get them to sleep. She taught me how to pray, how to love, how to teach, how to discipline, how to forgive, how to serve, and how to understand. I feel like I've been in a life-long apprenticeship with a master teacher. Her children love her and and her grandchildren are obsessed with her. Now it's my turn to be a little bit of the amazing mother she has been for me.

I love you, Mom! Happy Mother's Day (and birthday!)