You’re a mom if …

We are coming up on yet another milestone—but this time it’s one of mine. Mother’s Day. This is my first Mother’s Day as a real mom. Last year, I was a huge baby-and-water-retaining preggo, and I remember thinking, “Next year is going to be totally different.” That thought couldn’t be more true. Mom and baby’s first year together has taught me what being a mother truly means. So, here are my thoughts on motherhood.

You know you’re a mom if …

• You have been accidentally pee’d on—in your mouth.
• You have ever stayed up all night holding a sick infant.
• You have ever caught vomit in your bare hands.
• You have ever wondered, “Will I ever shower again?”
• You have ever wondered, “Will I ever sleep again?”
• You have ever wondered, “Will I ever get to see that episode of Game of Thrones everyone is talking about?”
• You have ever looked like an idiot and danced like Elaine from Seinfeld just to get your baby to laugh—in a crowded restaurant.
• You have ever paced for five hours straight trying to get your crying newborn to fall asleep.
• You have ever read Pat the Bunny and Goodnight Moon until your voice gives out, just because his face lights up at every page turn.
• You have ever loved someone else so completely and so wholly as you do the little person that giggles every time you kiss his toes.

And a special Happy Mother’s Day to my mom. All I said above, you have done for me, and until this year I never understood fully what that truly meant. Thank you for teaching me how to be the best mom I can be just because you were the best Mom you could be for me.
Happy Mother’s Day.