Thanks, Mom

This Sunday is Mother's day. As a mom this day is pretty cool, it is a day where your kids (and husband) are mandated to thank you for being a (rad) mom. When I started to write this, I was thinking about writing what every other mom/blogger writes about, "how motherhood is everything I dreamed of." or "it is the most beautiful thing a woman could go through."

Although motherhood is nothing short of amazing, it is also gross. You read that right, GROSS. Not referencing the details of the birds and the bees, and how our pelvic bones separate during labor. That part is beautiful and brilliant. It is astonishing what a woman's body goes through to create life; it is nothing short of a miracle. To be fair, I enjoyed anatomy and physiology in college, and the human body is by far my favorite subject.

So what makes Momming so gross? Kids.

I am not going to sugar coat it; kids are gross. If you are lucky, only for the first three to six months of their life, you are covered in puke. For me, this was closer to a year. After the puke settles, and you realize you can function only showering three times a week and that concealer and coffee will be your partner in crime, the real fun begins. We get to deal with the late night teething, yucky bottoms, and the drool. Oh, the drool! I think St. Bernards drool less than my kids. Let's not forget the forever green snot noses due to starting daycare. As a mom, you also earn the pleasure of sucking this snot out at least once a week. After the baby stage, you level up on grossness. Potty training is pretty messy for a bit. Especially with boys when realizing what appendage their pee comes from... Although both boys were quick learners, we have had some laughs and cries along the way. With Paxton we leveled up on eating grossness, that kid would/will put anything in his mouth. Lollipop fell in the dirt at the park, no problem, it's still good, mom. However, Kasen SWEARS on his grave that he ate a real earthworm. The jury is still out on that claim. On top of them eating things that they should not be eating, they are bottomless pits, messy, and some days weirdly picky. There are days you would think the kids have not eaten in days with how much they eat. Then others, we have the meltdown over the peanut butter touching the jelly with their PB&J's. Once we resolve the food dilemma, they then decide they aren't even hungry. Let's not fail to mention kids and their "cleaning habits." From hygiene to bedrooms, it can be somewhat repulsive. Every week Trey and I clean their room, and every week, 45 seconds later you would have assumed a tornado came through. Toys? They belong all over the floor and in your bed. DUH Mom! Not in their rightful organized places. Those clothes you asked me to put away, definitely belong on the floor, unfolded. Like, come on, who folds clothes anymore???

This is life. Well at least my life, raising boys.

Nevertheless, the grossness still gets better. I get to be a gross mom. I enjoy being just as gross with the boys, not the same as highlighted above, but I enjoy being a gross mom. If it isn't clear, the good Lord knew what he was doing by providing me, boys. I love digging in the dirt, whether it is planting food, finding worms, slugs, and even my biggest fear roaches. I enthusiastically do it with my boys. I enjoy our awkward conversations about body parts, for example, Kasen and I had a good 40-minute conversation on what if a body part was located in another body part. We went into full detail on the hardships or silly things that could happen with each scenario. We also do this with hypothetical situations. Lately, the topic is who would win? "A scorpion or a snake? Why?". The stuff they make up is freaking hilarious. The way their minds work fascinates me. This mom also can't pass on her sick day cuddles, even if that means getting myself sick. Totally worth it. I also love being able to embarrass my kids. I get told "gross Mom" on the regular, and I soak it up like vitamin D from the sun. Whether it is kissing my husband, dancing like a robot, or even singing all the silly songs that they have Alexa play. It is TOTALLY worth it.

I admit being a mom has changed my perception of being a mom. Before having kids, I could never understand why my mom would cry over little things. Such as a Disney movie, or when I randomly would tell her thank you/I love you. Now I am doing those random crying spells, I can still blame it on the hormones right? Also, I did not understand the true meaning of when my mom would tell me:

"Nobody will love you more than I do."

"You don't know how hard I worked to get you here."

"There's food at home."

Thanks, Mom. Thank you for putting up with all my grossness. Thanks for letting me puke all over you as an infant, and again in high school. (Kidding not a puker.) Thanks for making sure I had a great childhood, even if that meant dad and you both had to work, and could not be there for every single event. Thanks for putting up with my temper tantrums, even when you did not know how to handle them. Major props for handling my childhood friends. We were a hot mess and had no idea what we were doing. You and Dad took care of every single one of them as if they were your own. Thanks for keeping the light on every night, and pretending like you were awake when I came home. Thanks for trying to be understanding, even when you feared for my future. Thanks for allowing to me express myself, even if you were disheartened when you learned I had a tattoo, plus another 5. I am glad to have a mom like you. One that allowed me to grow to become a mom like myself. Thanks for loving me and allowing me to pursue my own journey.

To all Mom's, thanks for being gross and having rad kid(s). We would not be as rad of moms if it weren't for you.