Happy Mother's Day!

Me and my Mama, August 2007.  Photo by Elizabeth Soergel

Me as a Mama, May 2011.  Photo by The Hubs.

Happy Mother's Day!

To all the mommas out there,

To the mommas who wear the "badges" of motherhood: stretch marks, C-section scars, bite marks, carpal tunnel, shoulder injuries, aches and pains, bumps and bruises,

To the mommas who squeezed a watermelon-sized baby out of their lady business,

To the adoptive mommas, birth mommas, step-mommas, mommas-to-be, grandma mommas, single mommas,

(All the women, who independent, throw your hands up at me... Just kidding!)

To the mommas whose formerly adult living rooms have become playrooms, whose cars are now full of carseats, toys, and crumbs,

To all the mommas who unknowingly walk around all day with spit-up/drool/snot on their clothing,

To the mommas who make dinner/empty the dishwasher/talk on the phone/type on the computer with a baby or child hanging off them or crawling all over them,

To all the mommas whose lives have been changed forever by a tiny person,

I wish you a very Happy Mother's Day!!!

I leave you now with my three favourite Mother's Day posts:

strocel.com

seetheorun

listentolena

A Few of My Favourite Mommy Things

On Sunday I will accept my award for "best mommy in a supporting role" for my performance in "The Life and Times of One Li'l Lilahbility: The First Ten Months." In addition to the Academy, I'd like to thank the following:

(These are a few of my favourite mommy tools. Some are useful, some are invaluable, and some are just plain cool. All have made life as a mom easier in some way.)

• The Ergo Baby Carrier: Distributes baby's weight to the hips and lower body. Comfy for both the wearer and wearee. Gotta love that baby-wearin'!
• White noise machine: Keeps baby sleeping for longer and cancels out household noises. In Lilah's case, it has become part of her sleep routine and acts as a signal that it's nap time or night time. The second this puppy goes on, she lays her head on my shoulder and sucks her thumb, succumbing to the inevitable... zzzzzz...
• Teething Bling: A necklace that looks nice on but also functions as a safe teething ring for baby! It also has a breakaway clasp for that freakishly strong baby in your life.
• Nursing tops: I have several, but this one is my favourite.
• Dustbuster: Now that Lilah's on finger foods, this gets used at least 3 times a day!
• Body pillow: Okay, this was more essential during my actual pregnancy, but I managed to hang onto it well into Lilah's ninth month. Which means it was an entity in our marital bed for almost a year and a half. So much so that it (he) received a name (taken straight out of The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy). The Hubs finally gave me an ultimatum. Either the body pillow had to go, or he would. Tough choice, but I ultimately "did the right thing" and chose the Hubs. (Sorry, Phil. I miss you, but the Hubs plays with my hair when I can't fall asleep. AND he does dishes. I hope to have an excuse to bring you back into the bed. Someday. Down the road. But not for a while, so don't get your hopes up. Lilah is quite enjoying her only child status at the moment.)
• Breast pump: Many a morning have I communed with this little beaut. We have a love/hate relationship, but it has certainly proven to be worth its weight in liquid gold.
• Totseat: A high chair on-the-go that folds up into a little pouch and fits in the diaper bag or stroller. (Many thanks to C for sending this all the way from Norway!)
• Teething tablets: Our saving grace!

Yes, moms are awesome. (And we work extremely hard. And we never stop. So go on and pamper the crap out of us on Sunday!) But we also have some pretty cool tricks up our sleeves. I don't think I could have survived the past ten months without some of these things in my bag of tools.

Happy Mother's Day!!!