What’s this woman looking at? Nothing. © drbimages
Like many mothers, my dear wife wants nothing for Mother’s day. I know, I’m supposed to buy her a Lexus, or a diamond, or a Home Depot flower tower project or something. But in fact she wants nothing so badly that she made a list of all the nothing she can’t wait to have. See, there are so many things in our lives lately that nothing…is wonderful. Nothing is brilliant. Nothing is restorative and healing.
Before I list all the nothings which moms seem to want, I’ve decided that I too want nothing for Mother’s Day. Like last year, we are giving away the highly-rated Spinning Meals iPhone meal-planning app for free (regularly $2.99), throughout this weekend. Available here on the App Store, please be a good friend and spread the word.
So ladies, I’m looking for confirmation – do you too want nothing for Mother’s Day? Here is a list – a few are from my wife, but hers is short actually. So I’ve added some more based on moms I know, and some hilarious blogs which help us cope. Wonderful nothings moms want:
- No “flotsam and jetsam” around the backyard, my wife’s term for all the stick swords, pine cone grenades, broken sand toys, unrecognizable dog chewies, etc.
- No recycling hanging around, especially Styrofoam blocks and hard plastics needing a special trip to the recycling center
- No interruptions during the sacred Mother’s Day morning sleep-in. No kids in my bed. Or as Karen Alpert says in her Baby Sideburns post, “take them outside immediately. Not downstairs. OUTSIDE. That’s right, scoop them up in a football hold and rush them out the door.”
- No overcrowded shelves full of toys we don’t use anymore. No boxes of outgrown clothes or toys destined for Goodwill, or unsuspecting friends and relatives.
- No dishes to clean up from any special breakfast, and no cleaning house for a special Mother’s Day event.
- No bathroom interruptions. Cue the classic Rants From Mommyland slogan “For the love of God, let me pee alone.”
- No Legos or dinosaurs scattered like landmines
- No landmines in our food like GMO’s or pesticides. And wouldn’t it be nice if it were easy to know which these are? Labels?
- No fluoride in our drinking water
- No smartphones buzzing or ringing to interrupt family time currently happening in person
- No anxieties about not parenting correctly
- No internal or external pressures taking away enjoyment of just living and loving on those kids
Which of these nothings is most important to you this Mother’s Day, or is it something not on my list? Is it really possible to live simply, cut back to the true necessities? Because I think the bottom line is this:
This Mother’s Day, let’s prove we really care about moms, and help streamline the other 364 days out of the year, when they carry such a great load to hold everything together.
Leave a Reply