By PD Martin
Yes, I AM blogging from Hawaii today 🙂
I’m currently on a girls’ trip with my daughter, mother and sister. But I want to devote this blog not to the trip per se, but to motherhood.
In some ways, it took becoming a mother for me to really appreciate my mother. She sacrificed lots of things for us girls, and was a single-parent for most of our lives, following a divorce when I was eight years old. She worked incredibly hard and saved hard to give us the basics early on, then later on a few splurges.
This trip would definitely count as a HUGE splurge. She brought my sister to Hawaii for her 40th birthday in 2008, and then a couple of years later my daughter and me, but this time for my 40th birthday. Then last year Mum really wanted to go again, but I knew it wasn’t going to be financially possible for me; so I said Grace and I couldn’t come. A few weeks later, she offered to pay for airfares and accommodation if we could come up with the spending money. Pretty good offer, huh?
Then, around April/May this year the same thing happened. Mum wanted to go to Hawaii again, but we couldn’t afford it. So she decided to dip into her retirement savings – again!
We have all been completely spoiled with these trips to Hawaii, and can’t believe how lucky we are.
Like I said, being a mum yourself makes you realise how much work goes into motherhood, and how much love. Not to mention the worry! But that’s a whole other blog.
When I was thinking about this blog, there was one other occasion that came to mind. When I was 22, I’d fairly recently split up with my boyfriend and he’d started seeing someone new. We’d managed to stay pretty much out of each other’s paths despite living around the corner, but then there was a birthday party coming up of the mutual friend we met through.
I was feeling insecure and second best – a feeling many people experience after a separation, particularly when another person comes on the scene.
Anyway, my Mum took me shopping and bought me a fancy leather jacket. I walked into that party feeling strong, way cool, confident and like a million bucks…thanks to my mum.
Don’t mums rock? What’s your best mum story? I hope you’ve been lucky enough to have a great mother in your life.
I have so many Mom stories . . . But this is the most recent one:
This past July, my parents took my kids away to an amusement park for an entire week. They spent the night before the launch of their big adventure and Mom asked me about my current projects. I told her I thought I had a good idea for my next one, but I'd have to interview an embalmer and a pole dancer to make sure.
And my 74-year old mother said, "Oh! You need to talk to X." She took out her phone, hit a contact button, and the next thing I knew, I was talking to a former Brazilian exotic dancer turned college professor who works out at one of Mom's Curves franchises (and apparently keeps nagging Mom to set up a pole–Mom says she'd love to, but the corporate office won't allow it), and who was delighted to answer any questions I might have whenever I had them.
Afterward, I handed the phone back and said, "You have a pole dancer on your contact list, Mom."
She grinned and said, "Beats having an embalmer, at my age."
Sarah, your story made me laugh out loud. You and PD have way cooler moms than me.
My mom is more of the sit in your recliner and toss out random passive-aggressive comments variety. Needless to say we don't vacation together in Hawaii. 😉
I'm working on shedding my baggage so my kids will still want to hang out with me when they're grown-ups. It's bloody hard work!
Sarah, what a great story! And sounds like your mum is a hoot 🙂 Very funny about the embalmer.
Sheri, I think lots of mums go for the passive-aggressive thing. Unfortunately you're not alone. And it's funny being away with the girls in my family and I wonder what quirks we'll pass on to Grace. For example, my sister is a pretty compulsive hand sanitiser, my mum doesn't like sharing soap, and I don't like Grace or me walking with bare feet on damp tiled surfaces in case we get papalomas (or whatever they're called). So we have our share of angst!
Lovely, Phillipa. Sounds absolutely gorgeous… and a good family tradition to carry on.
My mother took her vacations alone, well not alone, just not with my father or me. My mother-in-law, however, took me everywhere I wanted to go. I regret turning down her invitation to go to Egypt, but it seemed a little dangerous at the time.
Auntie-Mom is still traveling. I would rather go visit her in California than go anywhere else. Just being with her is a vacation and a party worthy of all comers.
Yes, it is a lovely tradition, Reine 🙂
I'm glad you had someone to take you travelling – and now make you feel like you've had a holiday. Sometimes those 'low-key' holidays (i.e. visiting someone you're close to) can be the best of all!