Moms

ParentsConnect put together a Mother's Day montage of photos, which I'm linking to here not only because I'm on staff there, but also because there's a shot of me and N from a couple years back just a bit shy of halfway through. It's one of my favorite photos ever.

I have nothing to say about motherhood today that hasn't been said many times before, and many times better. It all comes down to this: It's worth it. Every single moment of every single day is worth it. Every single moment of sadness and every single moment of worry and every single moment of resentment and every single moment of fear is worth it. Every single moment of joy and every single moment of pride and every single moment of laughter and every single moment of contentment is worth it. All of it. My two children make it all worth while.

Thank you, Em and N, for making me a mother.

The Forgotten Greens

No matter what I do, no matter how many lists I make (and check twice), there's always something left behind in my Thanksgiving dinner. Tonight it was the last-minute addition of Trader Joe's organic greens, popped into the microwave when I realized I had absolutely nothing of that color in my menu. Of course, since I left them in the microwave, I still didn't serve anything green, but...c'est la vie.

Dinner was fabulous. I can't decide if my stomach hurts more from eating or from laughing. We have my Aunt Barbara in from Florida, and our friends M and G, who always bring fun with them. I am thankful in so many ways, but too selfish to take any more time away from my family and friends to elaborate.

One quick semi-anecdote: On ParentsConnect, someone wrote about a Thanksgiving activity (we call them DOs) called the Thankful Tablecloth. I loved the idea, and decided to give it a shot this year, with a bunch of Sharpies and a $10 white tablecloth from Ikea (upon which N immediately spilled a full glass of grape juice, prompting G to write "I am thankful that I was not sitting right here" over the stain. Hee!)

As for my kids, well, N wrote, "I am thankful for the soldiers." Which was unexpected, and really sweet. And Em? Em started with, "I am thankful for my family and friends and Harry Potter," but then decided to add a few more thought. "And I am thankful for the environment. And NOT for the governor."

Good to know she's learning how to let things go, huh?

Me, All Over

They're still not officially Ready for Prime Time at ParentsConnect, but because I'm sort of all over the place there today, I thought I'd throw a couple of links atcha. Here's an essay of mine (cut a whole bunch, sadly...for me; you all got saved from my extraneous babbling) that some of you might vaguely remember from a couple of years back at Tiny Coconut. And here's a picture of me, multitasking away, which might ring a bell for some of you.

Me! Me! Me!

You may now return to your not-me-related lives.