Mother of a Day

I'd long been a Mother's Day grinch. I didn't hate it, exactly, but I avoided it the same way my single self avoided Valentine's Day.

But, predictably, when Ben and Roman came along, I started to see it for the worthy holiday it is. And not because I get gifts or free time or whatever (although I'm not complaining that it's currently silent in the house), but because it's a chance to celebrate everyone who contributes to my life as a mother. It's a long list, but here are just a few people who come to mind, in no particular order: 

To my mom, of course, who set the best example.
To Ange, who avoided Mother's Day with me until we both found new ways and reasons to celebrate it.
To Viv, Linda and my grandmothers who picked up where my mom left off.
To Kari and her fam for the unofficial adoption. 
To Eileen, who raised Anthony right.
To Wendy, who puts parenting into perspective for me.
To my girlfriends, who give me advice, empathy, hilarity, pity and occasional escapes from motherhood.
To Anthony, whose fathering makes mothering pretty easy. 

And, finally, to Ben and Roman, who made me a mom. Every day, they make it infinitely better than I expected.  Now, maybe some day they'll cooperate so we can take a decent Mother's Day pic. In the meantime here's one from this morning...

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!