And A Pinch To Grow An Inch

The subway gives one ample opportunity to contemplate life -- or at least make up outrageous background stories for the other train passengers. A few days ago, I was trying to avoid staring at the guy with twelve fingers (seriously) and my mind drifted to Mom.

The previous sentence suggests some connection between Mom and circus hands. The truth is just that I have a very short attention span.

Anyways- I was thinking of the fact that my mother never cuts corners. (Literally and figuratively. Anyone who knows Mom well knows that she is a staunch anti-jaywalker). The greatest thing about it is that Mom has a way of making her non-corner-cutting seem entirely effortless -- whether it's re-ironing my dad's shirts when they come back from the dry cleaners (am I telling family secrets?), never leaving a sink full of dishes overnight, or cooking healthy meals for Maddie when she could easily feed her something packaged. Effortless. Or maybe, it just seems easy when you were reared in a family of 10.

But, I digress.

In honor of Mom's birthday (and because I always choke when it comes to greeting card messages), I thought I would share a few reasons why I care so much about her. I thought this was a much better idea than quoting the lyrics from my favorite Boyz II Men song (Greg will certainly be the only person to laugh at that joke):

- She is dedicated to her students -- no matter how crazy their parents or stinky their lunches.
- She lets Greg and I make mistakes, but never lets us bear the consequences alone.
- She is a talented, creative chef -- and I use the word chef intentionally.
- She checks the weather forecast of whatever city I'm in.
- She can spell like a champ.
- She loved and cared for my grandmother like she was her own mom.
- She can roll her hair in 12 seconds flat.
- She'll always be my favorite shopping partner (and not because she picks up the tab).
- She makes time for others and never makes you feel second best.
- Her guest room is always open.
- She's a really bad darts player (evidenced by the game room wall).
- She loves my dad unconditionally.
- She has the same pair of pants in 27 different colors.

Happy birthday, Mom!