Mother’s Day: the holiday when writers, bloggers and pretty much everyone on social media share thankful, often generic, posts about their moms. It’s almost like the holiday is a competition among the children, no? A way to show off and declare their mom is better than others. Whoever says “I love you” the most wins. Ready, set, go? Kidding, but I will continue…
The reasons I love my mom are endless. Yes she’s caring, compassionate, responds to my incessant text messages and makes the best damn roast chicken, but it’s the little things she did while I was growing up that have made a lasting impact. I might not have loved her rules and quirks back then (who wants to be the last one in their class to get a cell phone?), yet I can look back now and see her intentions. Most of the time, at least.
This Mother’s Day I hope you acknowledge both the obvious (hello, giving birth!) and not so obvious things your mother or mother-figure has done for you. It might just make you want to cook and clean her house for a straight month, or at least for a day.
Little Things My Mom Did That Make A Lasting Impact
She made television a privilege
Television was never a given in our house. My sister and I had to earn our shows, especially during the summer, by doing chores, reading and playing outside. Even then we would get to watch maybe one or two shows, if we were lucky. As a result, my sister and I have hours and hours of (embarrassing) home videos of us pretending to be newscasters, celebrities, singers and dancers. We played with American Girl Dolls, ran around the backyard and did arts and crafts…all with my mom at our side. She was a good doll player, that’s for sure.
Not going to lie, my sister and I kind of backfired once we got older and now we have Netflix marathons together. Oh well, at least we know it’s “frowned upon.”
From the Princess Half Marathon in 2015
She celebrated the holidays…big and small
Our family celebrates half birthdays. HALF birthdays. Who does that? My mom.
She made Christmas morning the most special day, with elaborately decorated gifts (no matter what was inside) and special notes from Santa, which she had a friend’s friend write so we wouldn’t recognize the handwriting.
Valentine’s Day gifts at our breakfast seat, St. Patrick’s Day green eggs and ham, elaborate Tooth Fairy notes. She even made regular old Tuesday’s fun, and I hate Tuesday’s.
She strongly encouraged extra-curricular activities
I tried every club imaginable, mostly because my mom encouraged activities and hobbies. If I had it my way I would have sat on the couch after school and watched Lizzie McGuire while stuffing my face with all-natural, faux Cheetos (oh, she fed us healthy food, too). Instead, I dabbled in every sport and club imaginable. Gymnastics, dance, softball, tennis, basketball, track, Girl Scouts, art club, sewing camp (yes, I was cool). The list is endless and unimportant. What’s important is that she allowed me to find and develop interests, no matter how random or serious.
Both she and my dad were consistent supporters on the sidelines at my sports games (my dad on the field coaching) and I feel so lucky that they were/are involved in my life.
She made me wait until a certain age to get my ear’s pierced
13 was the magic number. I could get my ear’s pierced when I was 13 year’s old. Oh, and I could only get them pierced in the doctor’s office. Seriously, mom? Not cool. I somehow talked my way down to age 10, but the doctor’s office was non-negotiable. Most people I knew got their ear’s pierced as infants, yet for some reason I had to wait.
Believe it or not, my mom wasn’t a helicopter parent nor was she overly strict. This was just one of her rules that made sense later in life: at 13 (but really, 10) I was old enough to take care of the cleaning. Plus, who the heck want’s gross needles from Claire’s in their bodies? Her example showed me the importance of treating my body with care and caution, inside and out.
She made family dinners a priority
For as long as I can remember, our family has had dinner together almost every night. Four people sitting around a table, usually with a home cooked meal, talking about our days. I don’t know any differently. I understand this is a luxury that is not feasible for all families, but the simple act of sharing a meal contributed more to my childhood than I can express. You can read all the statistics and health benefits of family dinners, but none of that matters as much as the quality time we spent together. No matter who had a playdate or tons of homework, we all got together to share a meal at night. Still to this day it remains my favorite tradition, and one I will continue with my own family.
Linking up to Amanda for Thinking Out Loud Thursday!
I had to wait until I was 12 until I got my ears pierced. That was my big birthday present that year. Something that I appreciate very much from my mom was that we had bedtimes. that consistency was huge during my life. And family dinners were also a priority, and we got to help cook. I wish we had done a bit more from scratch, but she was also dealing with the era when that wasn’t as big a deal.
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You know, I wish I helped cook more too! We would help roll pigs-in-a-blankets but that’s about it.
You were the last in your class to get a cell phone too?! Omg, that was me too haha. And I have never met anyone else that had to get their ears pierced at the doctor’s office until now! I was an infant when I got mine pierced, but my mom had me get them done at the pediatricians office — and they did not pierce them linear so there’s that (and it still bugs me). But, I loved reading this post because my mom is so similar to yours, especially with all the holidays and the priority family dinners. I did not realize how rare it is for families to eat dinner together now a days, but I am so happy my mom made that a priority for us because I know those were important times for us as a family and will definitely be something I do with my own family,
Brie @ Lean, Clean, & Brie recently posted…5 Things I Can’t Run Without
Yup, the last one to get a phone. And by the time I got my flip-phone (which I loved) people were already on their way to smart phones that could – gasp – play music.
I got mine pierced due to dance! Haha! We had to wear these heavy crystal earrings and the clip on ones hurt like hell so getting them pieced was the only way! (I was probably in 4th grade? I can’t remember!)
And moms…..the best, right? What would any of us be without ours!
Ouch! I feel like that’s so much worse than getting your ears pierced too!
A beautiful post! Now that I became a mother myself, I appreciate my mom so much more. Building family traditions and spending quality family time is so soooo important. It’s awesome that your mom/parents have been such a great support system for you!
Olena @ candies & crunches recently posted…How Running Makes Us Happy, But Happiness Makes Us Better Runners
The family traditions (which I thought were silly when I was younger) are so important to me now. I’m grateful she kept them up despite my complaining :)
Wow, I love your mom! Moms are such a gift, and I”m thankful that my mom is one of my best friends. My mom and dad made television a privilege too, and it was always an activity where we would talk about what we watched instead of just watching. Mom is always encouraging. She’s really happy, and I think, the more I started to look at the way she looked at body image, the more healing it brought. God used her to point me back to what really matters, and that wasn’t how much I weigh. She’s active, but she’s not obsessed over exercise or food. She just eats and moves with a lot of gusto. And she’s about 30 years older than me. Her energy is contagious.
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Love what you wrote here, Em! I really admire the way my mom looks at body image too. She never made a big deal about it growing up and just made sure we were active and healthy.
You and your Mom are adorable!! Love it! My favorite meal that my Mom makes is her meatballs and fresh made sauce with spaghetti…So simple and so good…I think I got my ears pierced in 5th or 6th grade. So funny how me would make such a big deal out of things like that…What about the first time your Mom let you shave your legs…LOL!
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Right? Like why did I care so much (I know it was to “fit in” but it shouldn’t have been such a life-or-death thing). Shaving was around 6th grade I think! Probably could have done that sooner…
Wow do we have the same mom? Not being allowed to watch TV, having her on the sidelines at every game, meet, club, presentation, etc.? Making me wait until I was a certain age to get my ears pierced? I never thought to question her rules because they always made sense. I go through waves where I watch a lot of TV in one sitting, but for the most part, I’d rather read a book. You and your mom are the cutest!
Sarah @pickyrunner recently posted…Thinking Out Loud
How did I know you’d be able to relate? The ears pierced makes sense even more now because I was so active and playing sports. She didn’t want me to have to always worry about my ears (although I did end up having to tape them a lot during softball and basketball).
Your mom definitely sounds like an awesome lady! And I’m totally with you on not really appreciating all the rules when we were younger, but looking back and realizing they were actually pretty darn awesome. I’m really thankful that my mom was so adamant about eating healthy foods, even if it meant I was always eating “boring” homemade snacks instead of all the fun candies and cereals in the store :lol:
Amanda @ .running with spoons. recently posted…biking madness, face swap fails, and food talk (ToL#181)
Yes! I could never have Fruit Loops or Lucky Charms but “all my friends could.” (<- I'm not even sure of that statement). She fed us really well!
This is such a sweet post, you’re going to make her cry! My mom did the same with holidays and it has made a lasting impression on me! xo, Kristina
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I won “child of the day” for this one ;)
My mom celebrated half birthdays too, and I LOVED that little tradition. It was never a big deal, but it helped me get over a mid year slump sometimes. I love this sweet sentiment to your mother.
Julia @ Drops of Jules recently posted…Welcome to Drops of Jules! (Update on my Religion/Faith)
Yes! It started for us because my birthday is in between Christmas and New Year’s so family and friends would kind of forget about me (as a 5-year-old, that was just unacceptable). So now it’s a mid-year pick-me-up :)
Lizzie McGuire.. yessss! Oh my gosh that was my favorite. And I lol’ed at the sewing camp mention haha that’s hilarious. I went to band camp one summer so yeah, thanks Mom:) haha. This post is so sweet!
Amanda @ ExploringLifeAndThings recently posted…You were great, April
My mom often says that she misses Lizzie McGuire. I might too, actually….when everything was so simple, right?!
This is so lovely. It makes my heart happy to read things like this. My mum’s best meal is her Black forest trifle (dessert counts as a meal right?) And I totally had to wait for ages before my mum would let me get my ears pierced. Which was actually a very good thing since I fainted when it finally did happen!
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Dessert totally counts! Oh no! See, mom’s have a reason for everything…even if it’s annoying at times ;)
Love this so, so much. Moms are awesome! I begged and begged for my ears to be pierced, and my mom was insistent that I couldn’t do it until whatever age she did it at… but when she told my dad that he just asked what the big deal was, and I got my ears pierced for my next birthday. I think I was 6 or 7? Family dinners were huge for us, too, but I never realized it at the time. I just thought every family sat down and ate together every night. And my mom was big on getting involved with things, so like you, I dabbled in pretty much everything. It took a long time for me to find the things I wanted to stick with, but my parents were supportive of all my little endeavors.
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Haha my dad didn’t think it was a big deal either. In fact, my grandmother (his mom) said if my mom didn’t take me to get them done that she would. I think that’s why my mom moved the age down to 10 instead of 13.
Honestly, it wasn’t until high school that I realized that not every family sits down together for dinner. I didn’t know any other way!
Now your mom sounds like a super-duper-amazing person, wow! Absolutely awesome, it brought a smile to my face as I remember the fun my mom and I had growing up. She is the one who gave me my creative personality and I am sooooo grateful for that.
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I thought I was so right-brained for most of my life but now I see I got some creativity from her, too. A nice thing to pass along, right?!
This is such a great post!
I got my ears pierced at 10 and had to wait until my birthday rolled around (and I felt like I waited FOR. EVER. as “everyone” had their ears pierced) and I remember getting so mad when my parents let me sister get hers at 8 (she’s three years younger than me) because she didn’t have to wait, haha! First child problems right there!
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I remember that feeling so well! Oh and I’m almost positive my sister got hers pierced at a younger age than I did (we are three years apart too). If I think about it too long I’ll get mad ;)
Lovely reasons to be grateful to your mom. I totally agree with her on the ear piercing (and rationale behind it)… I waited til I was 19 and my mom actually wanted me to have it done by then so I could wear earrings like a “normal daughter”!
Haha well, now that I barely wear earrings (let alone makeup) my mom says similar things: “Dress up and look nice!” Sheesh :)
Love this! Sounds like you have a wonderful mother.
I was much older when I got my ears pierced, too, thanks to similar reasoning. And, while we didn’t do half birthdays, my mom did help make holidays extra special.
My mom says that making the holidays extra special for us was so much fun for her! She was able to bring about some magic and wonder for our childhood years, which I greatly appreciate.
Absolutely LOVE this. My mom has always made family dinners a priority too! It’s a tradition I love in our house. No matter what happens during the day we all come together to share a meal and chat about what’s going on with us. So important and definitely made me really close with my family! :)
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I love that she kept up the family dinners even as my sister and I have “grown up.” I hope to never let that go!
This is a gorgeous post!! Makes me miss my Mum! She’s on the other side of the world! Believe it or not, I’m 26 and don’t have my ears pierced, instead my Mum took me to the tattoo and piercing parlour when I was 16 to get my nose pierced instead! I love my Mum!
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I lived only 4 hours away during college and that was tough, so I can only imagine missing her constantly. You seem to have one cool mom :)
loved this! i also wasn’t allowed to watch tv almost at all- we got to watch cartoons if we were on vacation but that was about it. i pretty much played outside with my brother every afternoon once homework was done and didn’t start watching a tv show or two in the evening until i was in high school. we also always had family dinners!
Julianna @ Julianna Bananna recently posted…weekly workouts + body positivity
Same here with the TV! We would watch shows as a family as we got older (Modern Family, Dancing with the Stars, etc.) but it was only after homework and dinner were done.
I love this post! My mom also made me wait to get my ears pierced, I think I was 11 when I got them done. My mom also was really big on the Holidays, for our birthdays, she always made sure the “birthday fairy” came while we were sleeping to decorate the house with streamers and happy birthday signs. Moms really are the best!
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I love the “birthday fairy!” Such a cute idea :)
Aw, it sounds like you have a great mother and had a fantastic childhood! A mother’s relationship with her daughter is so special, and each one is so unique. I love that your mom made sure you were involved in sports and other activities throughout your childhood-that really does build so much strength and character. Nicely done! Thanks for sharing!
Beautiful post! I really enjoyed reading through :) I got my ears pierced when I was 14 after much persuasion from my mom. My little girl is 4 now and she got hers pierced last year when she turned 3 :)