Single Mom Chronicles: When Did You Realize You Were a Mom?

 

When did you realize you were a mom?  As a mom I am sometimes out and hear other kids calling mommy, I turn around! I grin because I realize my kids are not with me.  It is just something instinctive about the word “mommy”.  It is as if we are on command.  When my 7yo DD, fractured her left elbow last year.   We were pros at this point, who fractures both elbows within 4 months of one another.    I picked her up from camp and immediately took her to Children’s Hospital er.    After the series of x-rays she was instructed to not eat or drink since they were unsure if she required surgery.    I remember when the registration came in to verify all of our information. She was a mom with an older child(actually an adult) and her youngest.  We had a lot of conversation on having an age difference between our first-born and youngest child.    Her personality definitely fit her position in the registration process.  She was extremely personable and wanted to make sure we were taken care of while we waited for the doctors and nurses.   I guess she realized we were there for a few hours already.   She asked if I needed anything to eat, I quickly responded NO.  My response made her quickly realize since my DD was unable to eat I was not going to think of having anything.  We both laughed when she said “oh she can’t eat so you’re not eating, that’s being a mom”.

Her statement hit me like a ton of bricks.  It is not our labor/delivery journey that validates being a mom.  It extends far beyond their born day.   They hear our voice for 9 + months so it is only natural that they cling to our chest shortly after birth.   Then they learn the scent of our breath, body and that warmth we provide through our million of cuddle moments.    I truly realized when the clerk as hungry as I felt there was no way I would grab a bite if my DD was unable to eat.  We protect and preserve when we have to for our kids not matter the circumstances.     Every breath, feeling of heartburn, hiccup,  moment of gas, meal, emotion, thought we have during pregnancy is for them!  This is a special love we will never experience from another source.