In lue of the upcoming holiday, I thought that I would take this Top 10 Tuesday and write about why I love and am thankful for my mom.  There are definitely more than 10, but we’ll start here :)

10.  She bought me fun pajamas often.  Nothing helps you sleep better than a new purple Lion King night gown when you’re 7 years old.

9. She taught me to love shopping.  Maybe my bank account doesn’t thank her for this, but I do.  I didn’t always love it, but I do now and I still really love to go shopping with my sweet mom, even we agree on very few things :)

8. She encourages me to bake and cook, and taught me everything she knows.  From spaghetti to Cranberry Pudding cake, to 10 Minute Coconut Cream Pies.  My joy of cooking will always be a reminder of her and her sweet spirit.

7. She never promised me comfort in life and always told me that if I wanted anything in life that I would have to work for it.  She and my sweet daddy encouraged me to get a job when I was fifteen and have had no fewer than 1 job ever since.  I know what it takes to get where you want to be and I feel so much more prepared for “the real world” because I have been working hard since I can remember.

6. I love being a woman because of my mom.  She never pushed aside girly things because they inconvenienced her.  And by that I mean that I always had my nails painted if I wanted them to, I had every color of dress you could imagine, and I always had awesome shoes.  And when I started shaving my legs (because I let a friend practice on my legs at a slumber party in the 3rd grade) and was too scared to do it myself, she shaved them for me.  Now that’s a good mom. 

5. She has never complained about how needy I am.  Readers…let me tell you…I need a lot of attention and cuddling and ego-stroking sometimes.  And I always seemed to have what I needed to feel secure and didn’t realize until I got older just how much that took.  And for that, I am eternally grateful.

4. She reminds that everything will be okay.  Always.  Even if I already know it, and even in the times I really don’t believe her, it’s my favorite thing to hear in my times of distress.  Nothing seems to comfort me quite like hearing that from her.

3. She always let me do whatever I wanted to my room. I think my colors went from pink to red to yellow to lime green (when I got paint markers and wrote my favorite quotes all over my walls…so wonderful) to tope and homey.  Always supplying me with the cutest bedspreads and pillows that we could find.

2. She taught me how to give thoughtful gifts and wrap them beautifully.

1. She always supports me in my dreams.  At five, she told me I would be the best teacher in the world and drove me to summer school every morning in the summer so I could help my teachers.  And now, in my attempt to start my own business as a photographer she continues to show her love and support daily and that is the biggest blessing to me.  I know that without a doubt she will stand beside me with pride regardless of whatever crazy idealistic dream I have next.

I hope you enjoyed reading about why I am so grateful this Mother’s Day.  I would love to hear about your mom!  Send me a comment here or on our Facebook!  Thanks for reading!

Your Friendly Neighborhood Blogger-

Cait