Happy Mother's Day!

I'm in a unique situation today. If you've read my blog for any length of time, you know that mine is a close-knit family. Which means we get together for just about any reason that we can come up with. Mother's Day usually means heading out to the golf course with my mom and my sisters, and their kids. Then the requisite BBQ at my parent's house. Well, not this year. S2's kids are out of town, BIL2 has to work, S3's family is away for one of the kid's softball tournaments, I think, and the kicker--Mom is on an Alaskan cruise with Dad. I'll fill my afternoon with a staff meeting, then have some day-old Chinese take-out (cold, of course).

So for Mother's Day this year, I want to reflect on my favorite blogger moms. Some moms keep their kids out of their blogs, while others talk about their kids more than anything else. We've seen pics of some of them, and others are left to our imagination. There's alot of moms out there who are single-handedly raising their children, and I find I admire them the most. Many are still in school. Some are fighting health issues. Some are young, some are young at heart. A couple are fighting custody battles. There's been a few births in our "community" since this time last year. First-timers and old-timers. Some are in less-than-ideal situations at home. The common thread among all of them? They love their kids. More than anything else in life. While that seems like the way it should be, it often isn't.

I debated about actually listing my favorite moms, but instead of names, I'll just describe them:

• The single mom who works full-time, goes to school, brags about her kid at every opportunity, and deals with her own challenges.
  
• The unofficial HNT mom, who has helped out many a blogger, and a few real-life people as well.
  
• The young mom who is raising her newborn twins and their sister after their dad walked out the door and turned into a freak.
  
• The mom who has been fighting for custody, as well as some other real-life issues.
  
• The mom who sews dozens of costumes a year for her daughters cheerleading team.
  
• The mom whose husband is military, and has spent more time away than together. Truly an incredibly strong woman.
  
• The mom who's been regaling us with stories of her kids, including her newest one with the mammary obsession.
  
• The mom whom I someday hope to get to refer to as "Mom" ;-)
  
• The mom that most of you don't necessarily know as a mom, and who doesn't look anywhere near old enough to be the grandmother that she actually is!
  
• The mom who seems to have a good custody arrangement, a daughter who looks like a clone, and a son who sports one of the greatest mohawks around.
  
• The mom who shares her son's love of drums, Sinatra and Daft Punk, and isn't afraid to show the world her goofy dancing with him.
  
• The mom who is remodeling her childhood home, returning to her pre-baby weight, and graces us with lots of pictures of her new boy.
  
• The mom whose newest son will be raised in a loving, if a bit unique, family atmosphere with his other brothers and sisters.
  
• The mom whose daughter had her first chance at motherhood taken away.
  
• The mom with the genius daughter.
  
• The mom who feels like she's riding a bike and going nowhere, but "volunteered" to lead her daughter's scout group.
  
• The mom who doesn't really mention her kids much, but does occasionally share a hammock with them.
  
• The young mom whose own mom passed away recently, and still feels and shares her pain.

And you know that I could go on and on. But these ones all hold a special place in my heart. Happy Mother's Day to everyone!

You also know that I couldn't let it go by without posting a picture of MY mom. Yeah, I used it last month, but it's still a good one! Hope you're having fun in Alaska, Mom!