...about the day after mother's day

 

i've always had a bit of a love-hate relationship with mother's day.  i love the idea that mothers have a day of appreciation for all that they do, and, man, they do so very much.  that it is only one day seems wrong, somehow.  mostly, though, i don't really like the hallmark holiday-ness of it all.  the card stores, flower shops and telephone companies who cash in big time on the guilt of children who know that they take their mothers for granted but can wash those nagging feelings away with the swipe of their visa card.  i wasn't going to fall prey to all this, or so i thought. 

in my sixth year of being a mother, I fell from my high horse and thought, what the hell, i am going to embrace this day where my darling boys can dote on me.  bring on the presents, bring on the pampering.  this is my year of change, after all.  i have to admit, it was a lovely day, well, entire weekend.  I shopped (by myself!), had unlimited time to read, basked in the sun on the beach, lounged around and was told numerous times how much i was loved, how great i am, and how i am their favourite mom in the whole, wide world.  

reality hit me this morning, though, on the morning after mother's day.  the house was a disaster.  the laundry was piled up, the dishwasher needed unloading and reloading, the beach bags needed emptying and there was sand all over the floor so sweeping was in order as well.  to add to that, the shoes that I had bought on my lovely child-free shopping day had to be returned because I had bought the kind that "overpronators"need and, as it turns out, i am an "underpronator"  arrgghhh.  before i could launch into my self-righteous rant about how-right-i-am-about-that-stupid-mother's-day-crap-that-has-to-do-with-everyone-else-feeling-good-about-themselves-and-nothing-to-do-with-mothers-at-all, i was stopped in my tracks. 

morgan, my darling 5-year old, looked deeply into my eyes and told me how he can't wait until 3pm because it is a really long day at school before he gets to see me again.  my heart melted.  meanwhile, my 2-year old sweetheart, quinn, took one of the billion animal books from the shelf and sat up on the chair saying, "okay mommy, i be the teacher and you sit on the floor and i will tell you a story, but first we do tell-and-show.  do you have a hippo to tell-and-show today?"  i am so blessed to have these days with him.  

yes, reality set in.  mother's day is fine but i prefer all the days in between.  give me the sloppy kisses, the imaginative play, the need for a hug only a mommy can provide, and even the slamming doors, the pee on the floor and the emotional outbursts.  as hard as being a mother is, the regular days are better than i could have ever imagined in my wildest dreams.