Celebrating Moms in 2023

We have just celebrated Mother’s Day. Although it’s quite a holiday for the greeting card and restaurant industries, I think it’s appropriate to take some valuable time to celebrate who are moms are to us. It’s an all-encompassing job. I thought about all the roles our moms, grandmoms, and mom-like figures play in our lives.

I found this list on the Motherly website that I thought was a good beginning to understand the variety of jobs our mothers hold. Here they are:

1. Nurse—aka professional boo boo fixer, scrape soother, magical bruise healer.
2. Cleaning service—aka toy putter away-er, constant crumb vacuum-er, tornado fixer, face wiper, dishwasher.
3. Chef—aka gourmet cook, dual chef-sous chef combo, waitress, snack maker, walking Pinterest meal board, pizzeria chef.
4. Referee—aka fight breaker upper, mediator, tantrum tamer.
5. Personal assistant—aka appointment maker, play date scheduler, event planner, task manager.
6. Teacher—aka homework helper, example of living a moral life, explainer of right and wrong.
7. Meal planner—aka grocery shopper, ingredient investigator, recipe reader, cookbook.
8. Chauffeur—aka seat buckler, car seat installer, car DJ.
9. Birthday party organizer—the party planner, the present buyer, the creative genius, the wrapper and decorator.
10. Life coach—aka the amateur child psychologist, the therapist who listens to all. the. stories., the girlfriend when they need to vent.
11. Classroom parent—aka the class volunteer, the bringer of snacks, the organizer of the events.
12. Organizer—aka of the home, of the toys, of their schedules…basically, of their lives.
13. Personal stylist—aka the hair stylist, the outfit planner, the personal shopper.
14. Wet nurse—the feeder from our bodies, the makers of milk, the pumpers of the liquid gold.
15. Chief Financial Officer—aka we pay the bills, we buy them what they need, we allot a certain amount of money for fun stuff and treats.
16. Entertainer—aka singer, performer, actress, lullaby soother, magician, their personal audio book.
17. Handy(wo)man—aka fixer of the things, toy assembler, puzzle doer.
18. Psychic—aka reader of the minds, guesser of the needs, predictor of the future.
19. Sleep coach—aka nap negotiator, monster slayer, nightmare soother.
20. Pooping doula—aka bathroom helper, poop coaxer, butt wiper.
21. Rule enforcer—aka rule maker, deep breather when rules are not followed, decider of whether something is acceptable or not.
22. Investigator—aka finder of all the missing things, the questioner when there is a fight or say, crayon on the walls, examiner of things such as poop/ phlegm (and all those fun things!).
23. The Multitasker—aka the cook/ entertainer/ rule enforcer/ life coach often all at one time.
24. Chief Instagrammer—aka photographer, social media manager, selfie teacher.
25. Translator—aka interpreter of their sayings, the understander of what they’re saying, the communicator to anyone else who doesn’t understand them.
26. Dental hygienist—aka brusher of the teeth, toothpaste putter on-er, scheduler of the actual dentist appointments.
27. Memory maker—aka memory preservationist, magic maker, photo book maker.
28. Travel agent—aka trip planner, trip booker, the maker of the fun.
29. Researcher—aka fact checker (“Mom! I did not color on the couch!”), lie detector, investigator of the interwebs (what is that rash exactly?)
30. Crisis negotiator—aka diffuser of dangerous situations, law enforcement officer, special agreement agent (“Fine! You can have one more cookie if you get in the bath after.”)
31. Personal trainer—aka dance instructor, yogi, soccer coach, choreographer.
32. Bargain hunter—aka finder of the deals, saver of the money, college fund benefactor.
33. Imagination engineer—aka professional artist who knows how to paint all the things, the game maker, the creative wizard.
34. Encyclopedia—aka the answer of all the why’s in the world, all the how’s and all the where’s, who’s and what’s.
35. The comforter—aka Chief Cuddler, professional hugger, best kisser, human pillow.
36. Laundry service—aka the stain slayer, the fast folder, the washing wizard.
37. Transportation service—aka the carrier of the children/human maker/3D printer, the personal piggy-backer, the human jungle gym.
38. Lifeguard—aka swim instructor, sunscreen applicator, personal pool float.
39. The pet caregiver—aka the dog walker, the litter box cleaner, the fish feeder.
40. The magic maker—aka Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, the birthday wizard.

What more can I say!  Thank you so much to all those Moms who do so much for us as you hold our families together! For those interested here is the link to this article.