Dear Mom,

While there are countless things to thank you for, I wanted to highlight a couple things. You do so much for me and I couldn’t be blessed with a better mother than you. You work hard and manage to help me with just about everything, and I want you to know how thankful I am.

1. Taking Care of Me When I'm Sick

I’m not a baby anymore, but when I’m sick, it feels nice to have you treat me like your little baby. I know I’m just a tad very dramatic, so thanks for making me soup and letting me sleep in your bed and calling the nurses’ hotline to ask about my symptoms when I feel miserable.

2. Answering My Stupid Questions

Moving out is hard because I have to doing grown-up things without really being a grown-up. So thank you for letting me call you and not laughing (too hard) when I ask if I bake or broil chicken, how to alphabetize categories on Excel, if I can put certain foods in a toaster oven, etc. You might worry about me with my stupid questions, but I promise I’m capable. Because of you.

3. Scheduling My Doctor Appointments

I don’t know why this is so difficult for me. If you didn’t schedule them I don’t know if I’d ever go. Thanks for knowing my schedule better than I do so that I can actually go to the doctor. You also know all the names of my medicine, so when they ask me what medicine I am taking, I don’t awkwardly sit there.

4. Working Hard to Provide for Me

Remember that time you got a $500 gift card from a work conference and you spent it on me? That didn’t go unnoticed. You could have treated yourself to some nice clothing, good meals, a spa trip, etc. But you didn’t. You bought me pots and pans so when I moved into my apartment I could cook something more than a quesadilla. Because you work so hard I’ve been able to travel the world as a student ambassador and study abroad. You work so hard to make sure I can have a variety of experiences and opportunities, and this is possibly my biggest thank you.

5. Learning to Give Me Space

Thank you for learning to let me make my own decisions. It didn’t always feel like this, and I know it’s hard because you just want what’s best for me. So, thank you for letting me do stuff for myself and not smothering me.

6. Being a Mom to My Friends Too

I grew up as an only child for most of my life, so thanks for letting my friends feel like they were my sibling in our house. This means letting me invite friends on family weekend trips, referring to them as your second daughter, inviting them to dinner and paying for their meals because we’re so broke, and that one time in the fourth grade when you literally pretended to be my best friend’s mom when her parents couldn’t come for Thanksgiving Lunch at school.

7. Watching the Same Things Over and Over

I’ve been watching Full House since I was five, so thanks for letting me play it all the time. Thanks for supporting my Full House obsession and getting me the Full House full series box set for my 18^th birthday (no shame). It’s not just Full House, either. I have seen The Parent Trap and Titanic COUNTLESS times, but you just smile and roll your eyes at me a little bit when I watch it… again. Thanks for all the times you joined me, even if you weren’t really watching, but just wanted to spend time with me.

8. Sharing Your Bed with Me

I think by some law of the physics of life, your mom’s bed is supposed to be more comforting than your own. Thanks for letting me sleep in your bed when I want to. Sometimes it’s because I’m too lazy to clean the stuff off of my bed, but sometimes it’s because I miss you. Thanks for letting me just climb in for any reason anyway.

9. Taking Care of My Cats

We only have our cats because my stepdad and I wanted cats. And we ended up having one more cat than you originally were okay with having. Now, you take care of them even though they drive you absolutely crazy. Thanks for taking care of my babies while I can’t, because they’ve become a part of our crazy household.

10. Letting Me Rant

Thank you for answering the phone every time I call and want to complain about my life. I know I can say something to you and have it stay in confidence. You listen to what I have to say and give me advice (unsolicited or not). I know I can call you and vent about school, people, life, etc. and you will always listen to me. Thanks for being my personal therapist at times.

You’ve been there for me always. What can I say? I love you forever, I like you for always, as long as I’m living, your baby I’ll be.