My mom is so wise . . . Sssshhhh! Don't tell her I said that.
My mom is so wise . . . that if you've known me for any length of time you've probably heard some of these sayings. The more I move into motherhood, the more I hear myself saying these things or offering them as advice to other moms.
Mostly, I just chuckle at the wondrous vocabulary and world my mom created for me and my sis. I'm in awe of the mommy standard she set for us. I'll never be able to live up to it.
8 year old me: "What's for dinner?"
Mom-ism: "The seed of the flowering etwas." (Which, as a kid, I always heard as "seedofthefloweringetwas" - like it was one word. Only as an adult did I figure out that "etwas" means "something" in German. Funny, hunh?)
8 year old me: "What time is it?"
Mom-ism: "One hair past a freckle."
When we were teenagers and staying up later than the parents.
Mom-ism: "Don't ask me homework questions after 8pm." That went for any question that required a thoughful answer or decision, actually. She was like, "If you want a 'no' then ask now. If you want a chance at a 'yes' then ask tomorrow.
Situation: Sis and me fighting. And we've have knock down, drag out sister fights. I was mean.
Mom-ism: "Take it outside! If you can't get along, I don't want to hear it."
Situation: My sis and I talking to my mom and she ignores us because she's reading a book.
Mom-ism: Silence. Because she had no clue we were talking to her! There could have been an earthquake and she wouldn't have noticed. Seriously, her paperback was yesterday's smartphone!
Situation: I fall over backward while rollerskating uphill and hurt myself. I scald myself on hot bath water and wildly jump out of the tub Mom fixed for me.
Mom-ism: Mom laughs. Nevermind that I was rollerskating uphill! Boy, was I mad at her as a kid. But now that I'm a mom, guess what my first reaction is when my children take a minor tumble? Yep, you guessed it. Can I blame my mom?
Mom has had her share of health scares later in life. Too many for a relatively healthy person, but she takes it in stride.
Mom-ism: "Living is hazardous to your health."
She's the only one in the world who can get away with calling me:
Mom-ism: Punkin (not pumpkin, pun-kin), Sugar, Sugar Plum and Hon. And I love it!
When I was 16 years old, Mom told me what her dad told her at 16:
Mom-ism: "You'll never know as much as you do right now." I didn't get it then, but I do now.
My mom is always positive. I just love that about her. Her eyes crinkle when she smiles - which means her eyes are pretty much always crinkled.
Mom-ism: She uses words like "Wunderbar! Wonderful! Fabulous! Terrific!" She's always encouraging others no matter their strengths or weaknesses.
Her favorite gifts to receive are photos and memories.
Mom-ism: "I just want to see all your smiling faces every day." So she has a big batch of frames and we give her a big batch of new family photos every year to fill them. Of course, we also get to see her in person as often as possible.
Her favorite gift to give is family travel and making daily life easier.
Mom-ism: She always wants us to have "Too much fun!" Common refrains are to: "Take yourselves out to dinner on us" or "Where should we go next?" Then she proceeds with itineraries, plans, and incredible photo books recording all our amazing memories.
I vividly remember my childhood -- and so much of what I remember is spending time with my family. Mom was home with us until we reached school age and then she worked part-time while we were in school.
She was there when we got home to do our homework. She sent care packages to college and became a 2nd mom to my husband. She's an amazing grandmother to all her grandkids who just adore her. My mom and dad share a great love story spanning almost 60 years now - and it keeps on getting better! We cook together and we travel together as a party of 10+ (3 couples, 4 grandkids -- and now the grandkids are adding partners & friends!).
Most of all, we laugh together. We have had our tough times and I learned my tough lessons as a kid, but there's a mom-ism for that, too.
Mom-ism: "I choose to remember the good stuff."
Eight year old me: "If there's a Mother's Day, how come there's not a Kid's Day?"
Mom-ism: "Every day is Kid's Day."
Every day WAS Kid's Day for me. Thanks, Mom. I love you!
Happy Mother's Day 2025!
Originally published in 2013, but I update it every year with more Mom-isms!
