Its Mothers Day again. We love it...cute hand drawn pictures, found tokens of love, the brunch place you go to that becomes a warzone of screaming 5 yr olds covered in syrup…

We watch our children discover and adventure through the world with joy most of the time; the other 40% we try to figure out if its poop or chocolate. I was pregnant with my first, hanging out at our neighborhood block party when one of our neighbors walked up to chat. He put his hand on my arm, looked at me sternly and said, “You know, your car will never be clean again” and deeply sighed. He had been bested and knew it.  

Mothers Day isn't about cards or flowers, though how nice are those?  It should be a day that we recognize it's not always easy being pulled a million different ways by a million different needs. Remember it can be a climb, but you're making it. It's a slog some days, fixed by kisses on the nose and an extra long hug. We always tell children to be kind, so remember to be kind to yourself, too.  Take that extra long “shower” so you can check your email or play Candy Crush, and know you're not alone. We asked around and found stories from lovely moms on their experiences and insight.

“People ask what my hobbies are. I mean, I'm a mom. I enjoy trips to the bathroom in silence.”

“I was rushing one morning, trying to get dressed and 3 kids out the door. Dropped them off at school, ran some errands, and finally ended up at the grocery store where the 16 yr old check out guy said, 'Are your eyebrows supposed to look like that?' I had used blue eyeliner. No one said anything till 3 o'clock.”

“I made the ill advised choice to take my 2 yr old to a McDonalds play structure. She got confused at the top and started crying, unsure how to get out. I climbed all the way up to go get her and got stuck. The manager had to come get me out. My daughter climbed down by herself.”

“Before I had kids, I didn't even know you could destroy and entire house with a granola bar.”

“If a second grade boy asks to sit in your lap, please know you're about to be farted on.”

“Parenthood is like a game of 52 Card Pick up, except the cards are screaming and on fire.”

“Being sick as a mom gives you a glimpse into how they would survive without you and the answer is they will not make it.”

“At a restaurant my four year old told the waitress she looked beautiful. Right as she leaned down to say thank you he said, 'but not in back, it looks weird in back'."

“To describe my mother would be to write about a hurricane in its perfect power. Or the climbing, falling colors of a rainbow.” - Maya Angelou

For all the strong, beautiful women out there, happy Mother's Day (and it's usually poop).

Image by Liz Looker

Words by Amanda Galston