When I was young, I wanted to be my just like my mom. She was (and still is!) kind, funny, caring, and I've always thought she was the most beautiful person on the face of the planet. She always makes time for my brother and I, and spends time with us. She always makes us feel important. She's held me when I cried, or when I was excited, or whenever I just needed her.

On more than one occasion when I was little, we dressed up and put on some music and had mini dance parties on afternoons before I started kindergarten. There were times where she would take my brother and I on a walk to the mall and buy us an ice cream, and times where we made Christmas decorations, cooked, watched movies, and read books. She was, and still is, the best mom in the world.

But, like every other teenager, I thought that maybe I could do everything on my own, and even though we were still close, I pushed her away, without really noticing. I didn’t even clue in, until she actually said that. I never wanted that to happen, because my mom is someone I go to for every little thing- boy problems, friend issues, things I’m excited about, or things I’m furious about.

Thankfully, that didn’t ruin our relationship or hurt us in any way. Like any mother-daughter bond, there are ups and downs, but in my opinion, there are infinitely more ups, because my mom is my friend. She’s the first person I go to for big news. She’s the person that I want to know what’s going on in my life.

My mother is the person who really listens, any time of the day, for any reason. Even being away from home, I try to call or Facetime her every day. Even though this doesn’t always happen, we still text and there’s always some form of communication.

She is never one to cut me off from a long rant and tell me what she thinks is right or wrong. My mom is the best person to talk to, and the best person to hang out with. When I went home for American Thanksgiving, one of the things I was looking forward to most was spending time with her. We went shopping (which I know she hates), we went out for breakfast, we went out for lunch, we binge watched all of the new Gilmore Girls; we just spent time in each other’s company.

I can’t wait to be home (which I will be in just a couple of days!) for Christmas, and it’s my mom’s favorite holiday, and she’s passed that to me. One of our traditions is going to the mall on Christmas Eve, get Eggnog lattes, and people watch (there are A LOT of panicked people running through malls the day before Christmas as it turns out!). Most people would probably think that’s something to do with a friend, and it is. Because my mom is my friend. There’s no one else that I feel I can trust more, that understands me more, or who will listen to me more.

I know that not everyone has the opportunity to spend this much time with their mom- my mom retired from nursing when I was born to stay at home with me (and then later when my brother was born) so much of how my days went when I was young were spent with her. But, if you do have the opportunity, if you want to have a connection with your mom, she’ll almost always be there for you. Even though my mom and I have had some pretty unpleasant fights, I would still do anything for her. My mom is my friend. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.