The Best Part of Being a Mom

I was on CafeMom yesterday, and one of the questions posed was "What's the best part of being a mom?" As usual, I couldn't pick just one thing, so here's my response.

What's the best part about being a mom? Oh, that's easy. It's all about the hugs. You know which ones I'm talking about, those full body (literally - when they wrap their arms around your neck and their legs around your waist), squeeze you 'til you're both of out breath, giggly hugs. Or the sleepy hugs, the ones where they just sling an arm around your neck when you come in to kiss them goodnight just one more time. Usually accompanied with a crooked, sleepy smile and a murmured, "Love you, Mommmmm....zzzz..."

Or is it the gummy smiles of a new baby? Those are really good, too. Those first smiles, when you just roll your eyes at everyone who tries to burst your motherhood bubble by telling you that it's "just gas" and think, "What do you know about my kid? I just carried him/her inside my body for nine months, I think I know a real smile when I see it, thanks very much." I particularly love the ones that start out slowly, just like sunrise. A little smirk, slowly parting into a half-moon of lips, and ending with a full-on, toothless expression of pure joy just because you're standing there. That's the best part.

Or is it when you and your kids love the same things? When I sit next to my all-too-rapidly-approaching-8-year-old son, who wants me to sit with him and watch Star Wars: Episode 3 with him again because he knows that's the only one I consider even worth my time outside of the original Star Wars trilogy; the ones George Lucas originally conceived before a plethora of money apparently made him insane (Will disagrees, but what does he know? He's been tainted by CGI technology...) Or when we love the same parts of Lord of the Rings, and we scream at Gandalf together to watch out, that Balrog isn't really dead... Yeah, that's it. That rocks.

Oh, but wait... how about when your preschooler comes to you with a book, curls up in your lap, presents you with your favorite - Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus - and says, "Reading time is cuddle time, Mommy!" And proceeds to sit back in your lap like an easy chair, waiting for you to begin in your best Pigeon voice, and tell him the story about the Pigeon's meltdown. That's the best.

Um... but then there's when you're helping out at your kid's school book fair on your birthday, and he has his entire class wish you "Happy Birthday, William's Mommy," as they pass by the library on their way down to lunch. That's a tough one to beat...

Okay, just give me a while to think this through... I'll come up with the one thing, honest. Just give me a sec...