Hearing Mommy

As a new mother, I waited a very long time to hear Meg say "Mom." She said "Dad" ridiculously early. But she was well over a year old before she said "Mom." In fact, she could say "shoe" and "cat" before she said "Mom" (and we didn't even have a cat). When she finally began to say it, I loved hearing "Mom" and then "Mommy" over and over again.

As Meg and Clare became toddlers and then preschoolers, things changed a bit. "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy" is now what I hear when the girls are yelling over one another trying to be heard first. "Mommy" is what I hear when I've spent hours cleaning the house, I am in the middle of cooking dinner, the baby is crying (Anne is our first colicky baby) and one of the girls comes to tell me they've spilled paint all over their room. And then there is the humorous but grating "Mommy...Mommy...Mommy..." with nothing following it (this is usually repeated several times in the course of ten minutes). At times like these I must remind myself that I am lucky to hear the word "Mommy." 

Happily my children have made this a little easier for me. A few months ago Clare brought home a paper apple from school on which the teacher had written what each child was thankful for. Clare was thankful for "Mommy." That apple went right up on my refrigerator and during our most stressful days, I look at it and know how thankful I am for my daughters. This week Meg added to my refrigerator collection with her Valentine card made at school. The card listed some of her favorite things Mommy and Daddy do, such as reading her books at bedtime and taking care of her boo boos. This is without a doubt my favorite Valentine's gift ever!

Being a parent can be a thankless job at times but when they do say thank you, it means so very much. Happy Valentine's Day.