Happy Mothers' Day

To all the mothers out there, thank you.

Thank you for knowing where everything is, even when you've never laid eyes on the thing in question. Thank you for remaining invisible until somebody wants something. Thank you for vacuuming under the couch, for wiping the sticky messes off the floor, for signing those permission slips, and for combing the knots out of unruly hair.

Thank you for saying the hard things. Thank you for being mean. Thanks for not caring what other kids get to do, for not handing out money like it's candy, and for not handing out candy every other minute.

Thank you for going to work... and then coming home and working hard. Thank you for working hard at home all day long. Thank you for going days at a time without having a conversation with another grown-up, for eating PB&J for lunch instead of shrimp cocktail; for cooking healthy, delicious meals fit for a king, and doing it on a budget. Thank you for for not eating your young when they complain that your delicious, healthy dinner tastes like sour lemons.

Thank you for buying new shoes that will only be worn by short people without jobs. Thank you for spending hours at a time sewing Halloween costumes that will be worn for a fraction of that time. Thank you for the Hello Kitty birthday cakes and the Transformer backpacks. Thank you for thinning out the toy box when no one else is looking. Thank you for everything you do when no one else is looking, because usually, no one else is looking.

Thank you for taking care of other mothers' children. Thank you for feeding them, for allowing them into your house when all you really want to do is watch Oprah; for treating them like they matter to you because they matter to your kids.

Thank you for being the keepers of the peace. The guardians of love. Thank you for making home a sanctuary.

Thank you for being a mom.