Dear Mom,

This Sunday is a day for all the moms: new moms, seasoned moms, grandmothers, stepmoms, foster moms, adoptive moms, great moms like you. 

This day is your day, dedicated to celebrating you and everything you do to help keep us happy, healthy, and fed. 

One day is hardly enough, really, to celebrate how wonderful you are. It’s hardly enough to say thank you for all of the roles you play in our lives. 

Your superpower is the ability to wear many hats, often at the same time. You are a caregiver, teacher, chauffeur, cook, nurse, mediator, listener, artist, creator, shopper, maid, baker, homework helper, scheduler, cheerleader, and keeper of all the things. 

You just have a way of doing it all. You meet our most essential needs, provide emotional support and counsel us when we need a trusted friend.  Moms are a source of unconditional love, support, and encouragement. 

The world just wouldn’t be the same without you.

Thank you, mom, for helping to bandage my scraped knees. 

Thank you for being there to help soothe the sting of fractured friendships and ease the pain of a broken heart after a first love. 

Thank you for encouraging me to forge my own path. 

As I’ve grown older, you’ve shifted to a different role in my life, becoming my closest friend and confidant, offering guidance on tough stuff like work and marriage and kids. 

Mother’s Day is the perfect day to honor you for all of these roles. 

But I also know this day can be hard for a lot of women, too, due to complicated relationships or difficulties that prevent that close mother/child bond. 

This day can also be hard because it can be a painful reminder of what’s missing for those of us who have lost our moms. We remember them with love and longing, wishing for more time. 

It can also be hard for those who have always wanted to be a mom, but it just hasn’t worked out. So, you patiently wait and hope and pray as your arms remain empty, waiting for your turn to hold a baby of your own. 

Perhaps you’re a stepmother, working to find your footing in a blended family. 

As much as this day can bring joy and gratitude, it can also bring pain and sadness.

And, maybe, it’s a combination of both: the love and joy are living right alongside the sting of grief.

This Sunday, let’s celebrate you with your favorite things, including your favorite treats from Ashley’s! 

Moms are amazing, just as motherhood is amazing and complicated and exhausting. So, thank you mom, for everything.