Mom's Daily Five

Top five reasons why you're glad it didn't rain today:

5. No rain means kids can play outside

4. No rain means no muddy shoes or footprints across your carpet

3. No rain means no thunder or lightning, which equals no scared little ones

2. No rain means garage sales/farmer's markets

1. No rain means no rainy day chores!!

Mom's Daily Five

Top 5 lies it's okay to tell your kids:

5. Mommy always makes her cookies/brownies/etc. from scratch

4. Santa's watching you, so you better be good

3. No, Mommy's never done that (that can me whatever you need it to mean)

2. Mommy always got good grades and never turned her homework in late

1. Yours is the most beautiful drawing (sculpture, model, painting, etc.) I have ever seen

Mom's Daily Five

Top 5 reasons why sleep in sometimes way better than sex:

5. You don't have to be in the mood to do it

4. You can do it alone or with your hubby and it takes the same amount of effort, either way.

3. You can do it for five or more straight hours without getting sore

2. You don't have to worry about waking the baby

1. You don't have to worry about making a baby

Mom's Daily Five

Top 5 reasons to celebrate Back-to-School:

5. You can stop desperately trying to find new ways to entertain your kids

4. Back to school means no more reruns of your favorite shows!

3. Back to school is a perfect excuse to go shopping

2. The kids will be out of the house for 6 hours a day!!

1. The kids will be out of the house for 6 hours a day!!

A Mother Always Knows

A few weeks ago was my, ahem, thirty-first birthday. On this day, we were still in the midst of moving, so my birthday was not on anybody's list of immediate concerns. My hubby, kids, my Dad, and I went out for dinner, and it was nice. But, I couldn't help thinking that this would be the very first birthday I ever had without a cake. My dad, hubby and the kids sang "Happy Birthday" to me at the restaurant even though there was no cake. This lifted my spirits. But, the big surprise came when we got home. My mom, you see, had hurt her back and was unable to go out for dinner with us. She had stayed at home to rest. However, when we got home, we discovered a pretty pink cake sitting on the counter and ice cream in the freezer. My mother had snuck off to the store, injured back and all, while we were at dinner just so I would have a cake for my birthday. I was delighted. Such a seemingly simple thing meant so much to me, and, more importantly, let me know that I was loved. Thanks, Mom.