Dear Mom

Heartfelt tributes to the women we’re celebrating on may 13.

THE NATURAL

BY LAUREN AKINS

I was born to be a mom.¶ However, over the past year and a half, I have learned so much about motherhood that I was not prepared to face: from the lack of showers to the complete exhaustion to the sacrifice of almost any social life to the question of “Whose body am I in?!” to the amazing discovery of how deeply I can love someone I just met.¶ Becoming a mother can look different too. My grandmother became a mother by adopting my mom. My mom became a mother by having me, my sister, and my brother biologically. I became a mother through adopting my first daughter, Willa Gray, and then giving birth to my second baby girl, Ada James, three months later. Both of my “birth” stories were very emotional and extremely difficult and turned into the most amazing love stories.

When I dreamed of becoming a mom, I had only a daughter’s point of view. After watching my mom “mother” us (having the happiest childhood imaginable), I thought I pretty much had the “mom thing” figured out. Yeah, right. I appreciate my mom in a whole new way now that I have experienced firsthand the crazy sacrifice she made for us. But more than a sacrifice, it’s an unmatched, indescribable gift.

No other accomplishment in my life is even comparable to being a mom. Nothing in the world could be more rewarding. Motherhood has topped it all. I may not remember the last time I washed my hair. I may have slept just five hours last night. My social circle may now consist of only a 2-year-old and a 4-month-old. (Do my dogs count?) I may never squeeze back into my skinny jeans again—if I do, I definitely won’t look the same. But my goodness, if I was put on this earth for anything, it’s to be a mom. And it’s worth it all.