Mommy stat: I wake up to my children and go to sleep with my children, I have for the past nine going on ten years straight consecutively.

I wake up at 5 am every morning, get my own kids up and dressed, ready for school, put them on the bus, and wait for them at the door by 2:30 pm. Get them off the bus, feed them, do homework, and if the weather is nice, they play for a little while outside(I’m often out there with them as well). Then dinner by 7p.m. Baths, read a book, then bedtime at 9. Same routine Monday through Friday.

Not including study time that I initiate without homework randomly throughout the week. Family time and movies together everyday. We go out every weekend. Keeping in touch with teachers, making sure kids aren’t bullying my children and vice versa, learning every child’s name that comes in contact with my children. Tending to their health, present at every single doctor/dentists appointment. Daily hugs, kisses, long talks of encouragement, compliments, lessons on life, and just staying up to date on what’s going on in my children’s lives. My kids make good grades, they work hard and love to be praised when they bring home good grades and do well behavior wise.

They speak properly and have manners, they compliment other people, love everybody, and are always well behaved in public. You cannot pay them to be rude, crude, inconsiderate, or anything less than what we are teaching them at home. They still occasionally “misbehave” as all children do. They can be sarcastic, not follow directions, quarrel with one another, and often need to be told more than once to do something. But I still love them through it all.

There are no days off, vacations, or paychecks for being a mother. Shoutout to all my mothers raising children and trying their hardest to do their best. It’s a challenge but rewarding to see your kids flourish. You will come across people that try to down play what you’re doing, but it’s one of/ if not the most important role to have in this reality.

By:Shavoka Shae