mama said
Moms give the best advice. Sometimes it's wise, sometimes life-or-death. Sometimes it's ridiculous and other times quirky. Our mama has raised six girls, and consequently has had the chance to dispense lots of wisdom and advice.
Now that I am mothering my own children, my first instinct when I have a question about rashes, tantrums, or basically anything else I'm too afraid to Google search, is to pick up the phone and call my mother. Funny how we roll our eyes at our parents' proverbs when we are teenagers, but as soon as we reach adulthood we revert into scared little kids who turn to their parents at every challenge, setback, and confusing recipe. "My mom and dad will know what to do!"
So in honor of Mother's Day, here is some wisdom from my own Mommy Dearest:
Don't talk to shmucks. Called after us as we head out the door on the way to the park, work, the bar, or vacation.
Don't put your drink down. 5/6 of us have turned 21. 5 times now my mom has had to go through the parental nightmare of knowing your child is out on the town with potentially irresponsible friends and LOTS of shmucks. Keep your drink in your hand, ladies!
Always overdress. Mom knows that if you're going somewhere - a graduation party, the airport, the grocery store, etc. - and you're not sure what's appropriate to wear, you would MUCH rather be caught overdressed than underdressed. To this day I still wear dresses to the airport, put makeup on before heading to the grocery store, and wear sundresses almost exclusively all summer long. This definitely comes from our Nana (Mom's mum) and our English heritage.
You're never too good for ANY job. I don't care if you have to go work at McDonalds as a 27 year old college grad. Who do you think you are, young lady? Suck it up and take the honorable work that is available to you. She leads by example, too!
Suck it up. I will never forget the time I sprained my ankle during an 8th grade basketball game. Tears sprung to my eyes as I felt the twist and sting of the injury. I didn't just ask to be taken out like a tough athlete...no, the coach (my dad) had to come out on the floor and the whole game stopped. My mom also had to came out from the stands. I really was being a baby about it. She was so embarrassed for me, and hissed "Suck it up," as she applied ice to my ankle. I have seen my mom get concussed, gash her finger with a knife, get stung by a swarm of bees to protect one of our sisters when she was a baby, and basically get her nose broken by our dog without tears. She's as tough as they come, and I admire that. Now that doesn't mean mom's not the best caretaker there is when we truly are sick or injured...she just doesn't tolerate unnecessary drama, fake illness or injury, or being a baby.
Be kind to everyone. Doesn't really need an explanation, but is something our mom has not only preached to us over the years, but more importantly lived out by example. I have never seen my mom turn away anyone who needed a bed for the night, a hot meal, a helping hand, or a pan of chocolate chip cookie bars. I mean really inconvenient situations where I would have rolled my eyes and said, "Sorry, you're on your own."
Go with the flow. Kind of necessary in a family of 8. This has served me well in life.
Always have chocolate chips in the fridge. She didn't so much say this, but just always did it. You never know when you'll have to bake chocolate chip cookies for someone, or when you'll need a quick fix of chocolate and have no desserts in the house!
Going for a walk or vacuuming will solve any problem. Again, I don't think she ever said this, but whenever my mom needs to think through a situation or blow off steam, she does one of these two things. It seems to work, so....
Have a cup of tea. Sick? Have tea. Sad? Have tea. Mom often thinks this is the solution to any ailment, which is sometimes annoying but also endearing.
Laugh often. Even in the darkest of situations, our mother keeps a sense of humor close at hand. Life is hard, but life is also amazing and beautiful. Laughter helps the tough situations and enhances the good times.
Sisters, did I miss anything?
Everyone else, what is your favorite piece of advice from your own mother or grandmother?
Now that I am mothering my own children, my first instinct when I have a question about rashes, tantrums, or basically anything else I'm too afraid to Google search, is to pick up the phone and call my mother. Funny how we roll our eyes at our parents' proverbs when we are teenagers, but as soon as we reach adulthood we revert into scared little kids who turn to their parents at every challenge, setback, and confusing recipe. "My mom and dad will know what to do!"
So in honor of Mother's Day, here is some wisdom from my own Mommy Dearest:
Don't talk to shmucks. Called after us as we head out the door on the way to the park, work, the bar, or vacation.
Don't put your drink down. 5/6 of us have turned 21. 5 times now my mom has had to go through the parental nightmare of knowing your child is out on the town with potentially irresponsible friends and LOTS of shmucks. Keep your drink in your hand, ladies!
Always overdress. Mom knows that if you're going somewhere - a graduation party, the airport, the grocery store, etc. - and you're not sure what's appropriate to wear, you would MUCH rather be caught overdressed than underdressed. To this day I still wear dresses to the airport, put makeup on before heading to the grocery store, and wear sundresses almost exclusively all summer long. This definitely comes from our Nana (Mom's mum) and our English heritage.
You're never too good for ANY job. I don't care if you have to go work at McDonalds as a 27 year old college grad. Who do you think you are, young lady? Suck it up and take the honorable work that is available to you. She leads by example, too!
Suck it up. I will never forget the time I sprained my ankle during an 8th grade basketball game. Tears sprung to my eyes as I felt the twist and sting of the injury. I didn't just ask to be taken out like a tough athlete...no, the coach (my dad) had to come out on the floor and the whole game stopped. My mom also had to came out from the stands. I really was being a baby about it. She was so embarrassed for me, and hissed "Suck it up," as she applied ice to my ankle. I have seen my mom get concussed, gash her finger with a knife, get stung by a swarm of bees to protect one of our sisters when she was a baby, and basically get her nose broken by our dog without tears. She's as tough as they come, and I admire that. Now that doesn't mean mom's not the best caretaker there is when we truly are sick or injured...she just doesn't tolerate unnecessary drama, fake illness or injury, or being a baby.
Be kind to everyone. Doesn't really need an explanation, but is something our mom has not only preached to us over the years, but more importantly lived out by example. I have never seen my mom turn away anyone who needed a bed for the night, a hot meal, a helping hand, or a pan of chocolate chip cookie bars. I mean really inconvenient situations where I would have rolled my eyes and said, "Sorry, you're on your own."
Go with the flow. Kind of necessary in a family of 8. This has served me well in life.
Always have chocolate chips in the fridge. She didn't so much say this, but just always did it. You never know when you'll have to bake chocolate chip cookies for someone, or when you'll need a quick fix of chocolate and have no desserts in the house!
Going for a walk or vacuuming will solve any problem. Again, I don't think she ever said this, but whenever my mom needs to think through a situation or blow off steam, she does one of these two things. It seems to work, so....
Have a cup of tea. Sick? Have tea. Sad? Have tea. Mom often thinks this is the solution to any ailment, which is sometimes annoying but also endearing.
Laugh often. Even in the darkest of situations, our mother keeps a sense of humor close at hand. Life is hard, but life is also amazing and beautiful. Laughter helps the tough situations and enhances the good times.
Sisters, did I miss anything?
Everyone else, what is your favorite piece of advice from your own mother or grandmother?