My children are at school. My house is quiet. It’s me time, so I prop my feet up on the coffee table in the living room only to land my heel in something sticky and sweet smelling. My guess is maple syrup, but I can’t remember the last time we had pancakes.
It’s funny how a dot of syrup can sabotage a moment of peace and quiet, but it does, and before I know it, my eyes are darting around the room taking inventory of how life with a two children under the age of two has forfeited my plans of creating a Southern Living-worthy home.
Things used to have a place around here. I guess in some ways, things still do have a place. Like the Sit-and-Spin that’s been in the center of my living room for roughly a month. Seems as good a place as any. Or the fire engine red Fisher Price slide that’s pushed against the wall where the antique buffet I dream about should be.
My being OK with these things surprises me. That’s not to say if I had company coming over that the red slide wouldn’t get crammed in a closet somewhere. But this is my day-to-day life with two sticky, messy, busy, playful children.
As moms, we surprise ourselves every day. There are the battles we fight to make our children better people. The things we get excited about that make our lives easier. The way we can rally through the day on such little sleep after a sick child kept us up the night before.
Moms are ordinary people who do extraordinary things. We pull from a reserve deep within. A part of our spirit that, prior to being a parent, we may not have even known existed. We make things happen.  
Motherhood is filled with “I never thought I’d …” moments. The things that surprise me about myself as a mom may be different for you. We all fill in that blank differently, but there is a camaraderie between moms because of the challenges we face.
I recently asked my Facebook friends to share the things they never thought they would do until they became a mom. The comments poured in, sparking laughter and lively conversation worth sharing here.
So, as we celebrate this Mother’s Day, I tip my hat to all the moms out there who’ve risen to the challenges of motherhood – the big, the small and the sometimes smelly.
Function Over Form
“I never thought I’d be a mom begging to get a minivan … and then loving it.” – Mandy Smith
“I never thought I’d get a sectional sofa or ask for a Roomba for Valentine’s Day.” – Megan Lerchie
Dressing to Impress
“I never thought I’d worry more about what my children are wearing versus myself.” – Jennifer Byram
The Down and Dirty
“I never thought I would be so excited about someone pooping in a potty.” – Emily Goodin
“I never thought I would become so desensitized to vomit.” – Kristen Blancher
“I never thought I would be peed on so many times just trying to change a diaper.” – Kelli Daughtry
“I never thought I would dig through poop to find the object my child ingested the day before.”
– Laura Johnson
“I never thought I’d discuss breastfeeding and pumping with friends over lunch. Or be so excited to let some of them know how much milk I had pumped at a session.”
– Rebecca Bogan
Wakey Wakey
“I never thought I would survive on such limited quality sleep, but I am.” – Laura Taylor
“I never thought I would wake before 7 a.m. on a weekend … on purpose.” – Brianne Cardenas
“I never thought 7 a.m. was considered sleeping in until now or that I would be so excited to get in bed at 7:45 p.m.” – Carolyn Rainwater
Me Time
“I never thought I would consider grocery shopping by myself a treat.”
– Michaela Stanberry
“I never thought I would hide in the bathroom for some alone time.”
– Jill Andrews
Entertainment Value
“I never thought that ‘Frozen’ would be the only Oscar nominated movie I had seen that year. And I never would have thought I would know the entire soundtrack.” – Sarah Ardis
“I never thought I would know the entire PBS line-up, or that I would be able to rank the shows in order of least annoying to most.” – Misti Walker
“I never thought I would have the entire Marvel Comic hero collection in my living room and know all their names.” – Ashley Lynn
“I never thought my “social calendar” would be overtaken by children’s birthday parties.” – Nancy Pipkin

Stephanie Jordan is a local journalist, marketer and blogger. Her blog can be found at www.stephanienetherton.blogspot.com, and she can be contacted at stephanienetjordan@gmail.com.