I know plenty of mothers–friends, family, coworkers. A ton of moms in my network. I think they’re great. They’re attentive. They’re all good cooks. They’re the glue that holds the household together.
But there’s someone special that I had the privilege of watching in action last weekend in Newport Beach. She was so amazing; I’ve never seen anyone like her. Never.
She’s got three boys–a five-year-old and a set of 3-year-old twins. By the time we met up, she’d already spent the whole day with them playing on the beach. Still, she continued to chase after them, soothe them when they were crying, play hide and go seek. Not once did she complain. Never did she lose her cool. She always considered their best interests. She was just a ton of fun. Her older son told me, “My mommy’s the best. She is. She’s the best.”
At the end of the night, when the rest of us adults were about to collapse from exhaustion (exhaustion from eating and drinking at a wedding), she perked up. “I’m going to tell the waitress it’s the twins’ birthday. Then they can blow out the candles and we’ll take pictures!”
The rest of us complained. Can’t we get the bill and get out of here already?
She snuffed at her husband, “Why do you have to be such a downer?”
Next thing you know, she’s leading the charge singing happy birthday while cradling one of the kids in her arm because he’d had a meltdown. With her other arm, she’s spoonfeeding hot fudge sundae to another son. On top of that, she’s asking me questions because she wants to get to know me. Un-friggin-real.
I couldn’t be that kind of mother. In general, I’m not a high-energy person. There isn’t anything I like more than sitting lazily on the couch with my face in a book. Sorry to my future kid. I’ll do my best to find you a super nanny.
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