So far quarantine has taken 4/20/20, Cinco de Mayo, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, Passover, countless birthdays, and many other holidays, but there are ways to stop it from ruining Mother's Day too. With everything going on, it is easy to constantly talk about how much you would rather be at college or out with your friends. What these statements overlook, however, is how hard so many mothers are now working with the onslaught of kids being sent home and stuck home. I wish just as much as the next person to be back living my normal college freshman life, but keep in mind, our mothers probably wish for their lives too. Personally, my mother went from being an empty nester to have all three college age kids back living under one roof. In addition, my mom has been taking care of both my grandmothers by bringing them groceries every few days, and one of them lives over 30 minutes away. Trips to the grocery store or vacuuming the floors are often overlooked, but these are things our mothers did not ask for either.

The very first thing my mom did this morning, before getting herself a cup of coffee or feeding the dogs, was come upstairs and shut my door. She then took care of the dogs and began a three hour house clean before any of us kids were even awake. This was followed by going to three different grocery stores to accommodate all of us, where she puts herself at risk to get us the special fruit roll ups that are a variety pack and not just strawberry flavor.

Our mothers should be appreciated every day, but this Mother's Day is the perfect opportunity to show your mom just how much all the little things mean to you, and for once maybe express that it is nice to be home with her instead of complaining about the parties your missing.

My mom's birthday was around a month ago, and she's not a big birthday person so we didn't do anything special. While sitting on the couch with my mom that night, I posted a cute little picture collage on my Instagram story, with a simple "Happy birthday, I love you." This post, that took me less than five minutes to create, brought her to tears. Such a simple act meant so much, because mom's often do not get the recognition they deserve. My mom still cooked dinner for all of us that night, cleaned the kitchen, and took care of the dogs. She did not ask for much help; she did not ask for a gift or a special bottle of wine, but her reaction to my post told me that all she asked for was appreciation. So this mother's day, I encourage you to do something special for you mom, whether it be a big gesture or a small thank you, because you don't know how badly they need to hear the words, "Thank you, I appreciate you."

On another note, if you are struggling with an idea for mother's day I have a great suggestion for you….puzzles! But not just any puzzles, customizable puzzles. My siblings and I got this for my mom because she LOVES puzzles, and with all the extra quarantine time, all of us have begun to invade her puzzles. There are so many websites that allow you to choose any picture and make it into a customizable puzzle for a reasonable price.