Another Mother’s Day is fast approaching and now that I’m married and a mom, there are a lot of mothers to be praised, honoured and celebrated in my life.
Until recently, with the birth of my own children, I had no idea just how much praise every Mom really deserves.
Thinking of my Mom, all the countless, thankless, selfless hours of dishes and laundry, getting us dressed, keeping us fed, hauling us around, and at the end of the day still having a smile on her face.
Now that I’m doing it myself, I can appreciate how truly exhausting it is some days. I’m amazed by my mother-in-law, who watches my kids and their cousins so we can go to work (while also juggling her own full schedule.)
And finally, my fellow moms in Summerland. We see each other at the park, at the pool, at Strongstart, or at the library.
You keep me sane some days, getting to talk to an adult and laugh about how my child just had a massive temper tantrum in the lobby of the library because she couldn’t bring her stick inside. I feel so lucky to be part of this community with all these great activities and resources.
We have our own pool in Summerland so we don’t have to drive to Penticton for swim lessons.
We have an amazing library that offers free children’s programs that encourage your children to read and sing. There were some days when I had no idea what else to do with my kids besides take them to library and pick out some new books, CDs or DVDs.
We’d get a new arts and crafts book like “The Artful Parent” by Jean Van’t Hul that would keep us busy for hours.
We’d bring home the “Hooked on Phonics” kit to begin teaching my daughter how to read. When I manage to have some spare time, reading also helps to keep me sane. If you’re looking for some inspiring Mother’s Day reads, check out “The Mother-Daughter Project” by SuEllen Hankins and Renee Schultz and Mitch Albom’s “For One More Day” or the hilarious “Everything’s is Perfect When You’re A Liar” by Kelly Oxford.
This Mother’s Day, my family will be going to the library to praise “All things Mom” for the Mother’s Day Tea, May 9, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Meet other moms and enjoy fancy tea and cakes, a special gift for all moms and an activity for the kids.
Crystal Fletcher is first and foremost, a mom! In her spare time, she is an auxiliary assistant community librarian at the Summerland Branch of the Okanagan Regional Library.