Own your Motherhood.

Motherhood is a roller coaster ride.

As I have mentioned before I have a teenager, a 16 year old to be exact.  I had him while I was a teenager (not something I recommend, by the way).  I'll be honest, I was not a fan of kids when I was younger.  I never had a baby-sitting job and the thought of sticky fingers made me ill, but there I was faced to face with motherhood.  When I found out that I was pregnant I cried and cried; knowing that termination was never something I would consider, I was faced with the decision of raising this child or adoption.  What a decision for a teenager to make;  the same teen who could barely decide what to wear to school that day.  I remember the discussion with his dad.  He swore that he would take care of us and not walk away.  How could I be so trusting?  How could this be happening to me?  But I was "in love", so I trusted.

When Bryan was born I still lived with my parents and his dad lived with his mom.  A couple of years later his father and I married, eventually bought a house.  Dan was telling the truth, he really was taking care of us.  We eventually divorced, but Bryan's dad was always a good dad.  Soccer coach, always at back to school nights, and I religiously forward him Bryan's school progress reports.

Even though I have been doing this motherhood thing for 16+ years, I still don't feel like I own it.  Motherhood.  My mom, now she owned motherhood.  She had three kids, two of us are 13 months apart.  As, she reminds me, she had 2 in diapers.  We had family dinners every night.  I mean real home cooked dinners.  She was a room mother, a lunch lady, a car pool driver; she was everything.  My friends loved her, after all she knew them all.  She also was blessed enough to be a stay-at-home mom. 

I am blessed.  Blessed because his dad made good on his promise.  Blessed because it turns out that I have a truly awesome kid.  Not a perfect kid, but he grew up with values and and morals.  I always let him form his own opinions and boy does he voice them.  He works, he gets good grades and has manners and respect.
I was always a working mother.  A mother with a full-time job.  A mother who couldn't always be in school at Christmas parties or go on class trips.  I don't always have dinner on the table at 6 p.m. & I only had to keep track of one child.  I feel like Mother's Day isn't a holiday for me, not because I lack mothering skills, but because everyone who has helped me along the way deserves recognition.  So many people who love us, who have been through every step with us, they deserve to be honored.  I am just a mom who has the best blessing ever; a beautiful baby boy who has grown into a handsome young man.

Happy Mother's Day to all Mom's!  You are blessed.