I’ve been teaching my daughter to say please and thank you for things diligently.  “What do you say?” I’ve been prompting forever.  “Pees!”  “And?”  “Tank You!”  It’s an ongoing process, but she’s finally to the point where she’ll say the words unprompted every so often.

And yet, despite my consistent efforts to raise a polite, thankful child, I find myself not always being polite and thankful with myself.  Particularly when it comes to the things I do all day, year in and year out, as a mother, I find that I’m reluctant to ask for thanks, and more reluctant to acknowledge even to myself that it’s deserved.  I suspect I’m not the only mom who does this, so consider today’s post a big thank you card for all the good work you and I have done this year.  Because being a mama is hard, and sometimes it’s nice to be acknowledged besides one mother-centric holiday a year.

Thank you (you meaning me, you, all of us) for…bolting awake at the sound of small cries and rocking in rocking chairs in the dark, little heads resting on chests.  This year, thank you for keeping everyone fed, whether that meant grocery shopping, gardening, nursing, pumping, warming bottles, meal planning or cooking or all of the above!

This year you tied countless shoelaces, brushed out countless tangles.  You washed dirty hair, dirty toes, dirty fingernails, dirty clothes.  You wiped up messes and boogers, cleaned bottles and high chairs and piles of messy dishes.  Thank you.

Maybe this was the year you knit wee little socks, or made a comfy quilt, or spent hours putting together a special surprise — the new bike, the kitchen playset, the little walker for your new little walker.  You stayed up too late and got up too early, out of love and excitement at your child experiencing something new, maybe something you helped make, too.  Thank you.

This year you held hands and walked slow, even when you wanted to go faster.  This year you said yes to pleas of “again, again!” beyond what you thought you could say yes to, when you were bone tired and just wanted to rest, to put the book down, to leave the park, to give your back a break.  Thank you.

This year when you struggled, you said yes to cuddles anyway.  Even if your heart was breaking, you carried on.  You forged a way through your grief and pain and kept on being a good parent.  You kept on loving and being there. Thank you.

Maybe this year your work commute was rough.  Maybe a child screamed the whole way to daycare and the whole way back and you only cried out of desperation a little, like that one time in the Target parking lot where you had to pull over because you felt your brain beginning to melt.  You powered through and were strong.  Thank you.

Most of all, this year, thank you for doing the countless things that keep a family running — the myriad chores and to-do’s and tasks that often fall in our laps that we as women do.  Thank you for every time you stepped up, every pumping session you made it through, every midnight feed, every tantrum weathered.

You did it, mama.  Happy new year.