To my kids on Mother’s Day: Thank you for all of it, but here’s what I really want

When my kids were really little, my Mother’s Day mornings would start like so many other Mothers’ Days: With sticky proud fingers bearing “breakfast in bed” trays covered in spilled orange juice and half-cooked pancakes. Inevitably, the duvet would end up trashed, the kitchen was—let’s just say—“well-used” and somehow, pancakes and OJ required every pan and spatula in the house.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved those mornings and those sticky fingers, but as my kids get a little older, I think it’s finally OK for me to share what I’d REALLY like this year for Mother’s Day. Feedback is a gift, kids—and actually, this message may be more for my loving husband, who I adore. Here’s what I really want for Mother’s Day:

Kids, I love you to the moon and back a thousand times over, but this year, just so you know, it’s totally OK if we skip the pancakes.

essays