There are certain times that I truly feel like a mom. Catching myself wiping food from my daughter’s face with just my finger and thumb right before she entered school was one of those moments. Carrying a large purse that is frequently loaded with hair bows and toy figurines as well as a fair amount of tissues, both used and unused , most definitely reminds me that I’m a mom.
More recently, my behavior over the holidays seemed so motherly that I just had to laugh. We have the typical video of our children opening their Christmas presents. You can watch them delight in their new gifts while you hear me saying things like, “Now, what do you say? “and “Isn’t that nice!”
The other proof that I’m definitely a mom is a picture of me blowing out the candles on my birthday cake. Before children I would have been thinking of my birthday wish, or at least thinking of that first bite of cake. This time, I was holding my two year old and standing behind my four year old. My six year old is across the table from me and all of us are blowing at the candles. Well, I was at least pretending to blow as I knew they cared more about blowing out candles than I did. However, the truly motherly moment happened when I didn’t even look at the cake and instead have my panic-stricken face focused on my two year old. Her hair came a little too close to the candle flames and I did what any mom would do as I pulled her back to a safe distance.
These are just a couple of examples of things that have become second nature in this journey as a mother. I’m sure many of the “mom things” I do are things I do without even thinking. This time I just happened to have caught myself on film. I may do things I never thought I’d do, but I’m happy to do them. It’s part of the job and it’s a very good one.
What mom (or dad) thing have you caught yourself doing lately?