Parenting Guru: Things Only a Mother Could Say

In honor of my Mom on Mother's day, I would like to share some of her mommy wisdom. Though we didn't always see eye to eye, her words are worth their weight in gold. Thanks Mom for caring. I love you.

1. This too shall pass. It annoyed me endlessly when she said this, but it's probably the best advice she ever gave me and I tell my kids the same thing. Time heals most wounds (or at least it dulls the pain). And in the case of something embarrassing, people have short attention spans. I can barely remember what happened yesterday, so I know this is true.

2. Pinch your cheeks. Everyone looks better with a rosy glow. My mom never spent a dime on blush, she just pinched. Many years (and broken capillaries) later, it was worth it, I don't have to buy blush either. Think of the money I'm saving.

3. You could use some lipstick and while you're at it, brush your hair. For a person with kinky curly frizzy hair who didn't have a clue about hair gel, this was more of a curse. She really just wanted us to look our best before we walked out the door. ("You never know who you're going to meet.") To this day, I feel naked without lipstick. It's the frizzy hair I'm still struggling with.

4. They're just jealous. When someone was mean to mean to me at school, this was her go-to line. Even if it wasn't true, it made me feel better. I say this to my kids. They're buying it too.

5. It needs a little salt. My mother is a good old fashioned cook. Most of her recipes came right of out the shtetl (little Eastern European towns where cholesterol meant nothing either). It's amazing we didn't have clogged arteries in our twenty's. I try to eat healthy, so when she reaches for the trough of Mayo or butter, I have to look away. However, if she says something needs a little salt, she's right.

6. Anyhoo. My mom's favorite word when she wants to change the subject or avoid a confrontation. Completely crazy and lighthearted (the word, not my mom), it never fails to put a smile on my face.

7. Don't run, you're going to hurt yourself. As a kid, I was a super fun combination of klutzy and foolish, so we had our share of emergency room visits. Practically every time I moved, she thought I was going to poke an eye out. Twenty years later that almost happened during a rambunctious "Head, shoulders, knees and toes", but that's another story.

8. Your face is going to freeze like that. I was the queen of funny faces. I could make my eyeballs shake and flare my nostrils on command. As you can imagine, my parents were very proud.

9. Put on a sweater, I'm cold. I promised myself I would never say this to my kids, but I do. At least I no longer remind them to pee before they leave the house.

Anyhoo...Happy Mother's Day!

Any words of wisdom from your mom you'd like to share?

Carpool Goddess is proud to be a Shine Parenting Guru. When not writing, she's complaining. It would make her mom very happy if you "Liked" her daughter on Facebook.