May 9, 2008 9:56 PM
Every Mother's a Working Mother
My article at Crosswalk.com for Mother's Day:
Every Mother’s a Working Mother
Barbara Curtis, Contributing Writer
May 5, 2008It was the kind of splendid September day when sending kids to school just feels wrong. Fortunately, that year I was homeschooling and calling the shots. Plus we were living in California, an hour from the Pacific Ocean. For all I knew, it could be the last day of summer, and we wouldn’t want to miss that. So it was off to the ocean with five children under eight – Josh, Matt, Ben, Zach, and Sophia.
Together, we cleaned up from breakfast, prepped the car, then gathered beach blankets, umbrella, towels, swimsuits, diapers, sunglasses, sand toys, first aid kit, sunscreen, a cooler full of snacks and drinks – ay yi yi yi yi! Hello, motherhood – goodbye spontaneity.
I loaded the assorted car seats and strapped, snapped, and buckled five wiggling bodies into Big Blue – the 1989 Suburban we grew out of only a few years later. And we were on our way.
With everyone else in school, the whole beach was ours. I staked out our territory close to the water, hauled everything down from the car, and set up camp. For five hours I served as personal valet, sunscreen slatherer, weather advisor, recreation director, swim instructor, lifeguard, EMT, food concessionaire, manners consultant, bus boy, interpreter, peace negotiator, psychologist – not to mention lost-and-found.
Finally, I hauled everything back to the car, strapped, snapped, and buckled five sunscreen-and-sand-coated no-longer-wiggly warm, limp bodies back into Big Blue and headed for home.
The sun through the window was soothing, and the car was full of contentment. It had been a wonderful day and I was pleased with myself as a mother.
Then from the back seat, I heard Zachary clear his throat, and in his deadpan four-year-old Eeyore voice ask, “Mom, when are you going to get a job?”
Read it all here.
Posted in Family, Mother's Day, Mothering, My life | Permalink
Comments
Barbara~
I can't tell you how much I needed to hear this today. *So* much.
And thank you for the link and kind words yesterday. Truly brought tears to my eyes.
*Praying* for your daughter's heart to be changed. Praying much and often for that.
Love,
Kari
Posted by: Kari | May 10, 2008 8:58 AM
Lovely! Well written.
Posted by: Stretch Mark Mama | May 10, 2008 11:36 AM
