"The Mom"

Being "The Mom" means that you scold, you correct, you discipline. You're the one who enforces a time out, demands a please and a thank you, and puts an end to the fun by announcing, "It's time to go home now." You show up and hear what an angel your child has been only to have them immediately melt down before your very eyes. You wipe bottoms, smell like sour milk, have greasy hair.

Can I be honest and say sometimes I don't like being "The Mom"?

Occasionally I'd love to be the "fun one". I wouldn't change dirty diapers. I'd be the one who doesn't have to say "NO" or worry about how much sugar is in the snack she's about to eat. I'd give up the part of me that feels so very responsible. The part of me that knows this little person won't always be so little. That part of me that is striving daily to shape her into the adult that she will become.

But if I wasn't "The Mom" I'd be giving something else up too. I'd be giving up those last few waking moments of her day. The ones where she snuggles up to me and whispers as she falls asleep, "I love you Mommy". Being "The Mom" isn't always easy, but those four words make it the best job in the world.

I love you too.