Happy Mother's Day!

I find it interesting that the entire month of May is Borderline Personality Disorder Month, May 25th begins the Week of Solidarity with the Peoples of the Non-Self-Governing Territories and May 15th is Nylon Stockings Day. Yet, we only dedicate one day of the year to honoring mothers. The women who spend 3/4 of a year with another human being growing inside of them. The women who allow little one's to attach themselves to their bodies to obtain the nutrients they need, (and often at times and places that they really don't feel comfortable with). And then they clean up those nutrients after they are done going through the kid, even with the unpleasant look and smell that accompanies it. They comfort their children when they injure themselves doing something that they were told not to do in the first place. Don't they deserve more than one day? I think so, but that would probably go against Hallmark's business plan.

Obviously, when we think of Mother's Day one woman immediately comes to mind. A woman who has gone above and beyond what we would expect from a mother. Someone who has made her children her life. Someone who has to play the role of father and mother. Someone who has to overcome adversity every day to make a difference for each of her children. Of course I am talking about

Nadya Suleman
Happy Mother's Day!

But seriously, I would like to say thanks to my mother. I honestly don't know how she has made it this far.

She has had the lovely pleasure of raising 4 boys. I don't doubt that she probably was hoping for a girl at some point in time, (and she almost got one toward the end). But instead of teaching a girl how to put on makeup and having tea parties she got us. A couple of stories come to mind when I wonder how she has survived. I'll bet that after having such a perfect son to start things off, she and Mike thought things were going to be pretty easy. However, that wasn't the case. I recall one of my brothers, whose name I won't reveal (but it rhymes with Snedidiah) thought it would be a good idea to jump from a bunk bed into a bean bag chair that had a very sharp knife in it. That resulted in him having a scar that wraps around one ear and winds itself to the back of his head. Of course this happened at someone else's house while Mike was off at work. And she also had the pleasure of walking toward the screams she heard on the side of our house. The source of the screams were Kyle and a friend who had been tied up to boards and leaned upside down against the side of the house and abandoned there by Kyle's older brothers.There are plenty of other stories that could be told. But she has persevered through the constant punching, yelling and mooning. She has been introduced to Mr. Dance, Franchesca Capuchi, G.I. Joe George, and many others along the way. She has had to say the phrases, "Stop taking your eye out", "We don't use that word in this house", "Put some pants on", "Stop writing on your brother's face" and "He really went potty on your homework?"I don't know how she has done it, but she has. And I am grateful for that. I think out of sympathy she has been given plenty of grand daughters.

And of course there is Sara, the mother of our children. She has a special bond with our kids. I play the role of disciplinarian and she does the rest. She knows what they need and when they need it. They always go to her first. They never walk around the house while I am gone and shout, "Mama" over and over again, but they do for her. The kids love her and I think she is pretty o.k. too. This is what happens when she is gone for an hour or two: I can't even imagine what we would do without her around. Hopefully all the mothers enjoy their big day, but especially Nadya.