It is my 1st Mothers Day as a Mother of 5. Who would have ever thought....I mean I always knew I would have a big family just wasn't sure what the magic number would be. Life is crazy in every way possible. From doing all the laundry to feeding all these maniacs. Everyday is an adventure! I'm pretty lucky and am usually reminded of it everyday in someway by something one of the kids do. Samantha is the sweet innocent one. She is always sticking up for someone at school or on her teams. Recently I was at her school for an Earth Day walk and several teachers and parents came up to me to tell me how much of a good kid Sam is and that she is so much fun to be around. It was nice to hear. Steven is such a chill kid and it takes a lot to ruffle his feathers. He's sensitive like his Daddy and is so kind to his sisters that when I watch him with them it makes me proud to think of the man he will be one day. Isabella - my Bella Rose is just going to take the world by storm. She is a ball of energy. She's sweet like Sam and such a good big sister. She's smart too so much smarter than we give her credit for. She just made the cheer leading squad and she is gonna be the best damn cheerleader East Islip has ever seen. Sophia Sophia Sophia - is crazy but a good crazy. You can't help but laugh at her. Sometimes she say's things that make you do a double take cause you can't see how an almost 3yr old came up with that. I wanna string her up one minute and give her all the cookies she wants the next. That leaves us Anthony lil Anthony Louis. He's my chukka's and Steve's gabbado. Don't ask us to explain the nicknames it's just our thing. He is the first one that people stop and say "wow he looks just like you" and I smile and say "thank you it only took 5 kids to finally get one to look like me" then I watch the person freak out to learn there is 5 kids. He is the happiest of our Pepe's yet! Look you know for the most part all of my kids are happy but Anthony is just the jolliest little pudge yet. Every inch of him and every minute I have with him makes me happy. Each kid was always my favorite at this age so it's only fair that Anthony gets his turn - give him 6 mths and I am sure I will be stringing him up like the others.
So I'm 8 and half years into this whole motherhood gig and even though I always knew I wanted to be a Mom I didn't really understand that it was really what I was meant to do until it happened. It was like a light went on the moment I held Samantha for the first time and hasn't turned off yet. Life is hectic and not always perfect. I definitely don't follow the rules. It's funny to me now how in the beginning other Mom's would think I was crazy for the way I did things. Hell Steve still jokes about how all of his kids ate baby food for about 2 weeks and then went straight to eating regular adult meals. To this day I rarely question myself because I am the Mom and I know what is best for my kids and so far they are 5 of the best kids I know.
I can't take all the credit - I owe my wisdom to the Mom's that are and were like Mom's to me. The Mom's that have been with me from the moment I said "I'm pregnant" for the 1st time and even the ones that came along after I said that the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th time. The Mom's that took all my crazy calls about something kid related - and if I weren't such a rule breaker I would have had the answer. The nice Mom's that give me a pat on the back and say "good job" and the Mom's that look down on me cause they think they are better than me. I like those Mom's the best cause those are the Mom's that remind me what NOT to do. I owe credit to all the grandma's I know - I look at them as the wisest. They raised their children and lived to tell about it - they are pretty smart! Then there are the women that aren't Mom's but should or could be because they are amazing women and have taught me a thing or too.
I admit I'm hard on these kids - we have high expectations of them now, tomorrow and 10,20,30 years from now. I hope years from now they will be thankful that we gave them a solid foundation to become successful adults. I think I've done a pretty good job so far so here's to keeping on and not screwing these punks up to much!
Here's just a little poem I came across awhile ago that I like to read from time to time:
Before I was a Mom I slept as late as I wanted and never worried about how late I got into bed. I brushed my hair and my teeth everyday.
Before I was a Mom I cleaned my house each day. I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby. I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous. I never thought about immunizations.
Before I was a Mom I had never been puked on - Pooped on - Spit on - Chewed on, or Peed on. I had complete control of my mind and My thoughts. I slept all night.
Before I was a MomI never held down a screaming child so that doctors could do tests...or give shots. I never looked into teary eyes and cried. I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin. I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.
Before I was a Mom I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put it down. I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt. I never knew that something so small could affect my life
so much. I never knew that I could love someone so much.
Before I was a MomI didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body. I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby. I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child. I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important.
Before I was a Mom I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay. I had never known The warmth, The joy, The love, The heartache, The wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom. I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom.