Some of you may know that I lost my mom the summer before college but I'm also sure that a lot of you don't know that. This has never been an easy subject for me to open up about and 3 1/2 years later it still isn't any easier. I miss the sound of her laugh and being able to call her on a long drive home just to tell her anything and everything about my day (because we all know no one cares about those kinds of things like your mom does). I'm not writing this article as a way to gain sympathy or light for my own situation but as a way to bring attention to how important it is to not only just appreciate your mom but to wholeheartedly appreciate the both of your parents. Nothing makes me more upset than seeing a family out to dinner with a bratty teenager in tow blowing off their mom's persistent attempts to stay connected and in the loop about what they have been doing at school or with their friends over the weekend. I was that awful teenager and I would do anything to go back and wipe off my aggressive black eyeliner and hug my mom one last time. If this article does nothing but encourages you to text your mom back when you're going out with your friends or to tell her how much you love her more often, than that's all I could hope for. Below are just a few things to be just a bit more appreciative of...because if your mom is anything like mine was than she's amazing.

1. Her Cooking (Duh).

2. Your inside jokes that you've had together since you were a kid.

3. Your favorite lifetime movies that only you two enjoy.

4. Her obsessive need to document every minute of your life through her blurry slightly off center iPhone photos.

5. The clothes she buys you from Macy's that may not exactly be your style but that always weirdly end up looking great on you.

6. The way she likes to keep up with your current friends and all of the ones you grew up with.

7. When she cleans your room or makes your bed for no reason at all.

8. Her laugh.

9. The smell of her signature perfume.

10. Her constant need to stick up for your siblings or your dad no matter how embarrassing they're acting.

11. Her love of washing your clothes and chasing you around with a tide to go pen or a lint roller.

12. Girl Talk.

13. Girl Talk that turns into her asking about every boy you've ever drooled over dating all of the way back to your 2nd grade crush who she nonchalantly bought a customized valentine for but totally helped you play it off like it wasn't meant for him.

14. The $20 that will randomly appear in your wallet whenever you've cried to her about the new shirt you've wanted or only have 16-cents in your bank account.

15. How much she'll always love you.