Teachers have a hard job. A hard job that they must love so much. I admire them – and their drive, their endurance, their love and their desire to educate our children.

And yet, they are even so much more. Reading the stories of the teachers who used their own bodies as shields against a tornado…the teachers who saved their(our) babies lives. That’s how much they care.

And it’s our job as parents to give those and all teachers our full support – whether we can volunteer in the classroom, on a field trip, provide our kids with the rest and nourishment and homework help that we can, and give what we can to help the teachers have the means for the materials they need. We are all part of this equation.

As I mentioned earlier, I always buy nearly everything on the teacher’s classroom shared ‘would love to have’ wishlist as well as my daughter’s school supplies – but that’s in August. What about April and May when those supplies are running out and teachers are spending hundreds of dollars of their own money for classroom supplies – and not for the special extravagant things – we are talking about paper, ink, pencils and glue.

I was thrilled and humbled when Office Depot sent me classroom supplies and a gift card to give to a teacher in our school. My daughter’s teacher could barely believe it when I gave her these gifts…and her statement was a simple “Oh my gosh, I love you! You have no idea how much we need this right now to finish off the year!” And when I came back to the classroom the next day to drop-off a forgotten book, she told about all of the supplies she was able to buy this week, with this generous gift.

Office Depot is a retailer that gets schools and cares about teachers and their challenges, and they want our kids to thrive. They are committed to teachers and want to help in their success – and our children’s success – through programs like Adopt A Classroom and the company’s Start Teacher Program.

I know you want to help your classroom – and I ask you to think about those teachers today. You can register with Office Depot’s charity partner Adoptaclassroom.org to participate in the REAL Change Project. Please do this and continue to spread the word – let’s make sure all of our teachers get the resources they deserve.

**Disclosure: I am an Office Deport REAL Change blog ambassador. This post is part of a campaign where I was compensated for my time. To learn about REAL Change, please visit their website.

..and then it happens. Which means it’s over.

And then you wonder what to do with yourself the next day. And the next. And the next.

When all you want to do is rewind to the week before that big thing and do it ALL AGAIN because it was such a beautiful labor of love and you just want it all back and for it never to end and you try to figure out how to bottle up all of the people who have now forever changed your life and put them in your pocket and carry them around next to your heart forever. But you realize that you cannot physically do that. So instead you just walk around in a daze for a week and ponder the meaning of life and maybe drive by their houses and start stalking them on Facebook because you just really really want to hug them again, but can’t because – WEIRD – to let them know you are stalking them.

I so love my partners in crime - Heather, Vikki and Galit.

So you just have to slap yourself across the face and wake the eff up and get on with your life and realize that you do have them close to you – because they shared their words with YOU and 500+ others and you will forever have those words to remember them by. Those words of motherhood – the babies, the pets, the children, the mothers, the jobs, the teens, the college students, the silly things and the sad.

All of the words of motherhood that connect us.

I still cannot believe we did it – made Listen To Your Mother – Twin Cities happen. But it did. And it was more than we could have ever hoped – from the submissions, the auditions, the talented cast, the sponsors, the cause, the theater, the community, the audience, our families, and just everything. It was honestly near perfect. Which really scared the absolute shit out of me.

Our cast received a standing ovation and hoots and hollers and hundreds of hugs after the show. Their stories and words touched hundreds of hearts – from kids to moms to dads to loves and strangers.

Everyone listened.

Even my kids. My kids were there. I told them they didn’t have to come – it would be boring for them – listening to moms read for 90 minutes – just stay home and watch Good Luck Charlie.

But they came. I didn’t see them after the show. They rushed home to get to bed from a very late evening for them. When I got home at nearly 1am, I went into their rooms and kissed their foreheads and tucked them back in as I listened to their steady breathing. The next morning they could not stop talking about the show. The listened and they remembered every reader, every story, every name and every subject. They had favorites and questions and could not stop talking about how much they loved the show. For the next three days they kept referencing the program to try to learn more about our cast and they spent time on their individual blogs to see their kids and learn more about their stories.

And they told me that we did a good job.

And could not wait to see it again next year.

Next year. Which means I cannot sit around being depressed and doing nothing for much longer. Because next year is going to be epic.

Our LTYM - Twin Cities Cast and Crew - Photo Credit - Jennifer Liv Photography

Now go listen to your mother.

Thank you Twin Cities for being so damn adorable.

**Linking up with The Pleated Poppy for What I Wore Wednesday – I love my dress from Poppy Togs and Clogs -  one of our LTYM Twin Cities sponsors.

You can see the transformation below!

Huge difference right?

We also bought a twin over queen bunk bed as their room is too small to fit two separate beds. We love this bed that we purchased ourselves at Walmart. It’s working out great for both of them (even though, yes I know, changing sheets on a bunk bed is some kind of mom-torture..seriously!).

The final touch to the room was adding some glow in the dark accents above Esther’s bed and also on the ceiling fan. The girls now love to go to bed and have a little glowing light to help them fall asleep.

We invited a few neighborhood girls over to show them Esther and Astrid’s new room and to give them a few treats. The room was a HUGE hit (sorry moms who now also have to buy a bunk bed), and the glow in the dark painted stencils were highly coveted. During the play-date we created sticker covered fairy wings and made magic star shaped shortbread cookies that we ‘planted’ in a garden of flower paper cups and candy daisies, and we had a glow necklace dance party. All party supplies and food were also purchased at Walmart.

Even though the bed and glow paint were popular – by far the favorite spot for Esther in the room is her new beanbag in the corner, where she can snuggle up with a good book – or even with her sister if they are being nice.

I would highly recommend Disney’s line of paints by Glidden. We’ve already purchased the chalkboard paint for Eloise’s room and I may even paint some in my kitchen for lists and such!

Some awesome things to know about the new Disney Paints:

- They are a new line of paints only available at Walmart, and they capture the magic and inspiration of Disney with 112 exclusive colors and 5 innovated specialty finishes.

-Disney paint is a premium quality and ultra-durable paint formulated with your child in mind to withstand wear and tear, as well as repeated washes.

-Disney paint is low odor and has no VOCs

-Disney paint has a distinct collection of colors grouped into palettes designed to give options whether they are infants or tweens.

-Many of the Disney colors coordinate with the Disney furniture and bedding you can also find at Walmart.

I was also provided with an adorable Disney Fairy Full/Twin Comforter to either use or to giveaway to one of you! I would love to give you this comforter to use in your little girl’s room!

The Giveaway is for a Disney Themed Fairy Twin/Full Comforter – dimensions 72×86. New in package. Shipped within the USA only. Easy to enter – just leave a comment for one entry and share on twitter or Facebook for another entry. Entries end on 5/28 and I will notify the winner immediately.

Disclaimer: Compensation and products for review were provided by Glidden via MomTrends. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions of Glidden.

Also, I had to make a doctors appointment for my kids. They need a camp physical done before June 1st. So of course I called the doctor’s office on May 5th needing them to be seen right away. We could see our regular pediatrician as soon as July 20th. Ha! So I just told them to give us anyone with a pulse. It still took almost 30 minutes to find a slot that would work with our crazy schedule. I don’t think that receptionist likes me very much.

But my kids are healthy and camp ready and Eloise did not even flinch and refused the band-aid when she got her tetanus shot. I still remember my tetanus shot when I was 11. I cried for three days and couldn’t sit down for a week. True story I’m sure. Eloise is also nearly 4’11″ and weighs only 57 lbs. But the girl eats a lot and eats healthy and it’s just the way she is built. But the doctor still asked about her eating habits and I went on and on about the watermelon and strawberries that she eats. She is probably my pickiest eater – but she’s still a good eater, and you can ask my kids and they will complain to you in earnest about how I don’t buy junk food. We don’t have chips or ice cream or cookies or pop in our home, but we do go out for treats now and then.  Now, we are also not organic/carob chip eaters either. I mean I will never forget the one time I went to a friend’s house that was au natural and I was offered a snack of carob chips – that I thought were chocolate chips – and I actually spit them out. We are no longer friends.

Anyway, we eat a balanced diet of allthethings and the doctor seemed happy that Eloise, while thin, is healthy. Until last night when I took the girls to a play and we ran into that doctor. My girls were sitting eating a treat of potato chips, cookies and juice boxes when the doctor walked by. She surveyed the scene and just politely said “hello” and kept on walking. And now we need to find another new pediatrician. This is a bummer as the wait for an appointment with a good doctor is months long.

Also, gas is now $4.49 a gallon, so I need to get the trailer hooked up to my bike as it looks like Astrid and I will be trying to be  ‘car free’ as much as possible.

Also, Astrid only has four more days of school. I may never have time to blog again.

In other news, my kids bought me an iPhone 5 for Mother’s Day. I promptly broke it within hours. It shattered. Like shattered. Saddest present ever. So I had to spend $279 to replace my Mother’s Day present because while I live with a lot of mom guilt – that was a bit of guilt that I could not ever live with. And I spent $40 on a case. Most expensive Mother’s Day ever.

Also, I need to tell you about my cat’s tooth fiasco. Do you think I can dedicate a whole post to brushing cat teeth – or would that be boring?

It’s not a secret that I like to shop. It’s also not a secret that my daughters are getting older, finding their own sense of style, and also love to shop. I’m an equal opportunity shopper in that I love to shop online, in small local boutiques, and also at our local malls. However, when it comes to making the whole family happy – with a good selection, activities, food and fun – well the Mall is where it’s at.

So consider us about the luckiest shopper family in the world that we have Mall Of America in our hometown! Mall of America has pretty much everything, which is why I find myself visiting there at least once a month if not more. And I don’t go there just to grab the latest fashions and sales from my favorite shops at MOA™ (that’s what we all call it), it is a great morning outing for me and my toddler on a quiet Tuesday (Toddler Tuesday® offers fun events just for the little guys!) when we are looking for something to do, a perfect and central place to meet for dinner with my girlfriends, the place that I take all visitors to our city, and a place for everyone to find something truly special and fun to do whether it’s a snow day, a rainy day, or even a sunny day.  MOA is THE destination to hit whether you are a resident or a visitor…and in the 20 years I’ve been heading to MOA, well I’ve never been left to wonder what I should do for fun or shopping during my visit!   Here are some of our favorite spots!   If I’m shopping for me – I love the unique offerings and shops at MOA. A trip to MOA is not complete without a stop at Sephora, Desigual, Athleta, JCrew, Nordstrom (and also Nordstrom Rack!), the Loft, and lululemon athletica. MOA is also one-stop shopping for finding the perfect shoes, accessories, handbags and gifts for just about anyone. Selection is huge, sales are great, and remember – TAX FREE for clothing in Minnesota!

My kids also love Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack – but love to check-out the latest Euro-fashions at H&M, be trend ready at the best prices at both p.s. by aeropostale and Ruum, love the tween vibe at Justice, and the classic stylings of Crewcuts and Gap. For my little one, I love naartjie kids and for my older girls it seems that a lot of Abercrombie is in our future.

I also have to mention how lucky we are to have an American Girl store at MOA – sometimes we visit the Mall JUST for AG – to see the latest dolls and clothing, for their fun events, or for a very special meal or ice cream treat. All my girls (and ME) love the American Girl store!

If you aren’t in the shopping mood (as if…), you will find plenty to do – like being a fighter pilot at A.C.E.S, screaming on a roller coaster at Nickelodeon Universe®, trying the ropes course (Ghostly Gangplank), winning a game of mini golf (at Moose Mountain), hanging with the sharks SEA LIFE® Minnesota Aquarium, or catching the latest flick at the Theatres….Trust me, you could spend days at MOA and never do it all. So tell Dad and your husband – that you don’t have to be a shopper to visit MOA, you just have to love some fun! And if you’re looking for a quieter time – well Barnes & Noble at MOA is a great place to read a good book, or see what’s happening at the MOA rotunda – from bands, concerts, book signings, star sightings, and cultural events – there’s always something to see and do.

Need to rest those feet? Well MOA is home to some of the best restaurants for everybody’s palette…from sushi to burgers, from sit-down to fast-food, from great wine to milkshakes, from a much needed cup of coffee to some frozen yogurt – well you won’t leave hungry at MOA.

Worried about parking or directions – one of the best things about the Mall is that it’s just minutes from the airport, you can take light-rail to visit, or find ample parking in the huge lots and ramps. And if you really don’t want to worry about parking and want to take your time to fully enjoy your MOA experience – well the Radisson Blu has recently opened at MOA, so now you can enjoy a full-service hotel with a pool, restaurant, bar, parking, and fabulous rooms while you spend time with family and friends at MOA – talk about a full and worry-free and fabulous fun vacation!

And now I want you to go to Mall of America this Summer (and next Winter too) – as it’s truly a great destination for the whole family!   So… Enter to Win a $100 Mall Of America Gift Card!   Easy to enter by answering this question in the comments of this post….   “What is your first stop when you arrive at Mall of America?”

Rules:

No duplicate comments. You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post

b) Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “”#SweepstakesEntry”"; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post”

c) Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post

d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here.

This sweepstakes runs from 5/13 – 6/9.

Be sure to visit the Mall of America page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!

Disclosure: I was compensated for my time for this BlogHer sponsored post, but all words, opinions and fashion choices are purely my own.

Not all of those snapshots are life-changing or seemingly that important, but they are the memories that come back to me most often and sometimes makes me laugh or cry with their details. Like the day when I was three years old and the clown chased me down the sidewalk in front of our home in Fargo. I remember the bright red of my tricycle that I peddled quickly away, and how the cool damp sheets felt on the line when I then ran into our neighbor’s backyard and hid amongst them. Or when our adolescent and crazy puppy ran out of the house and through the neighborhood and across the highway – the sight of all of us neighborhood kids chasing this dog forever trying to get him home. We were barefoot and in cut-offs and the boys without shirts on a hot Summer day as we ran around and laughed for hours as we chased the dog. Or more importantly, the snapshot of seeing my aunt for the first time after my uncle’s death. I still see her when I enter the church and how I don’t think I’ve hugged anyone that hard ever in my whole life and how strong she seemed as she wanted to stand with me and hold my hand when I went to say good-bye to him. Those mental photographs of moments of minutes of my life will always remain.

But the picture that shows the brightest, the most often, and in the most exact details of the moment – was on a quiet and unusually cold December 7, 2002 when I called my mom.

“Mom, Mom” I sobbed into the phone quietly for fear of Jed hearing me from downstairs.

“Tracy, what is it? Are you home?” She responded quickly. Worried.

“Mom, they let me take her home. They did. I don’t know why they let me take her home. They should not have let me take her home. We’re home. I don’t want to be home.” I continued to sob as I sat on the floor with my new baby in the empty room that was to become Eloise’s nursery.

I had only moved back to The States from The Netherlands a few weeks ago. I was 33 weeks pregnant, our house was under construction and we assumed we had nearly two months to finish the job. We decided to not move in any furniture, for the dust, so we camped out in one bedroom and ate take-out. I went to work everyday and Jed worked on the house. During this time I slowly tried to figure out what I needed for a baby – I ordered a crib and glider rocker, a few outfits in size 0-3 months and assumed that we were all set. We were busy with the house and work and with me acclimating to American life that the thought of diapers, blankets and a few burbs cloths didn’t even enter my mind as something a baby needed. We did not sign up for baby or birth classes and I’m truly lucky that I at least made a doctors appointment for my 36 week check-up.

Eloise was born the day of my 36 week check-up. My fluid was nearly gone and she was in distress and she was born quickly after my appointment via emergency c-section. There was no time for buying diapers or getting a crib delivered, for finishing a kitchen or realizing that Eloise wouldn’t be wearing 0-3 months clothes until she was nearly 6 months old. So to say that each day that we had to stay in the hospital was a blessing to me, would be an understatement, as by day four I had plans to decorate my hospital room and stay forever. I watched the nurses expertly handle, care for and love-up my less than five pound baby girl with their gentle and quick hands and knowledge…while when it was my turn I fumbled and shook and was afraid she would break. She had trouble latching, she squirmed when I tried to put those teeny preemie diapers on her, and giving her a bath scared me as much as the thought of going scuba diving in the Red Sea. And I know the nurses giggled a bit at me – this 34 year old first time mother – so unprepared for this day. Which is why I thought they would let us stay forever – or at least until I could give her a bath without yelling “OMG I’m going to drop the baby!”

But they didn’t. On day five, when Eloise finally got the hang of latching on, and I could change a diaper on at least my third try, they kicked us out. She was healthy, but only 4 pounds 11 ounces and honestly looked like the size of a good meal for our large cat. Yet they still sent us home.

And the first thing I did was climb the stairs against their orders since I had just had a c-section, put swaddled Eloise upon the floor of her empty nursery, shut the door quietly, and called my mother.

“Well Tracy, you couldn’t stay in the hospital forever. You’ll be fine.” She softly said.

“But what, what do I do with her? What do I do now?” I whimpered, hugging my knees as I sat next to my sleeping daughter.

“Just do what Eloise needs you to do. Feed her, rock her, change her, kiss her. She’ll let you know when she needs something. Trust me.” My mom answered gently.

“But we don’t have anything – diapers, clothes, a bed, a stove, food, nothing! I need things and stuff for babies!” I panicked wondering if it were still possible for Jed to take us back to the hospital. “Mom, I don’t think they should’ve let us out yet!”

“Tracy, you’ll be fine. Babies don’t need anything more than a warm set of arms, to eat, and a few dozen diapers. You’ll be fine. She’ll be fine. You can do this. Eloise will teach you how to do this.” She said with more confidence than I felt.

“I think you should fly in early. I don’t think I can wait until the 19th, Mom.” I begged.

“Tracy, you’ll be fine. You don’t really need me. I’ll see you in two weeks. Trust me, it will all be okay.” She answered.

Eloise started stirring then, her little mouth rubbing against the soft blanket as she looked for food. I scooped her up from the floor in my left arm as I cradled the phone on my right shoulder.

“I have to go, Mom. Eloise is waking up and I think she’s hungry.” I said as I was already starting to position Eloise across my lap to nurse.

“You know, Tracy, Eloise doesn’t care that she doesn’t have a nursery or a crib or a kitchen or a stroller or clothes that fit or any of that stuff. That stuff is just stuff. Eloise just needs you. Know that, okay. Just be her mom..today and every day…and whether she’s five days or, five years old, or 34 – she’ll be the one to let you know what she needs from you, her mom. Just listen and you’ll do everything just fine and be everything that you need to be. Just listen, okay Mom.” She said sweetly as we said our good-byes and hung-up.

Some 10 years later I still play that conversation back in my mind, because it’s true. Whether dealing with newborn needs, toddler tantrums, navigating grade-school homework, or tween angst – my best role is just to listen to them and they’ll guide me with what they really need.

Just like my mom did for me on that cold December afternoon. That day, even though it was five days after my daughter was born, was the day that I really became a mother.

Happy Mother’s Day, Mom.

Child hunger is an epidemic in this country, and because it’s often invisible, it’s one that goes unnoticed. Child hunger is not an issue of poverty. With more than 1 in 5 children in this country suffering from food insecurity – that’s nearly 17 million children – we know that hungry kids are in our schools, our neighborhoods and even next door. ConAgra Foods created the Child Hunger Ends Here campaign to help end the issue of child hunger in America…

..and more importantly, they’ve made it easy for you to help…

You can make an immediate impact my choosing food with the big red pushpin on the labels on participating packages of ConAgra Food products. You enter the code that is found on those packages at this site and that will donate ONE MEAL to Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization.  So easy! You can also enter your zip code to submit your local Feeding America food bank into a competition for an 80,000 meal donation! I have a place in my blog sidebar where you can also easily enter your codes! Some of the labels with the pushpin are Peter Pan, VanCamp’s and Pam and so many more!

ConAgra is working with bloggers, and moms like me, along with amazing musical artists like Carly Rae Jepsen and Cody Simpson, to spread the word that there is something so easy that we all can do to make a huge impact.

I would also love if you could help ConAgra foods by filling out this quick 30 second survey on Child Hunger. This will help them gauge the effectiveness of their efforts to raise awareness and make a difference.

Disclosure: I am a blog ambassador for Child Hunger Ends Here. Opinions are my own.

I’ve made this drive hundreds of times. Maybe thousands. And the feeling as I come under those tracks feels the same each time.

It feels like home.

When I was little, so very little, maybe even just three or four, my parents would sometimes wake me from my slumber so I would not miss the first views of Duluth as we drove into the city. Whether day, or night when Duluth was just a landscape of lights in the water’s reflection, the sight from the top of the hill leading into town meant we were home.

I’ve kept this mainly to myself as I became an adult – the passing under the tracks and over the hill and the butterflies of anticipation, and the feeling of comfort and home at the summit, because unless it is your home, you wouldn’t understand.

Sometimes when I’m with my kids I say to them “Girls, girls, get ready – in just a few minutes you’ll see Duluth!” But they don’t get it or understand. They see it because I ask them to, but they go immediately back to their books or movies or the conversation that I interrupted.

When I was a child we would all exclaim together like it was the first time we were seeing the city – not the thousandth. “There’s Enger Tower! Look, the lift bridge! Park Point! I see the church on top of the hill! Whoa, there’s a thousand-footer at the coal dock today!”

Now, I point out these sites to my children and while they might be ‘neat’ or ‘cool’ or ‘pretty’ they don’t have the same meaning for them.

This isn’t home for them.

And I’ve wondered all these many years if my brother still felt the same connection that I do with Duluth.

Until this past Easter when we visited together.

I don’t think my brother and I have shared a ride into Duluth since we were preteens and would make an imaginary line across the backseat that we could not cross for fear of a punch in the arm or a book thrown at a face. Back then, when it was just the two of us sharing the backseat for those 13 hour drives home, we would either fight or sleep, but when we came under the tracks, you would find both of us sitting near, shoulders touching as we leaned forward to enjoy the view.

So some 30 years later, I didn’t know what to expect as we climbed the last hill and were about drive under the railroad bridge. But my brother said it first “Boys, you’re about to see Duluth! The harbor and the lake are going to be right out your window in a moment!”  And his boys, and my girls looked up from their books, movies and conversation, said something like “Oh” and went back to whatever they were doing.

And I smiled that he remembered. That even though this hasn’t been his home for over 40 years and he doesn’t make it back very often, that it still had a feeling of home for him too. No matter our current addresses, this is where we were both born, where our parents grew-up and where our grandparents lived and died. Even though it’s not where we raise our own kids, nor we we actually grew-up – it still has a place inside our hearts that feels like home.

Sometimes I wonder what it will be for my children. When they move away, whether across the nation or over an ocean, will they feel something when they come home to St. Paul. What will be their landmark. The 1st Bank building downtown, crossing the Mississippi river, exiting on Hamline and seeing the Super Target? None of them as romantic and picturesque as Duluth, but home doesn’t have to be beautiful or magnificent. Home can just be the feeling of seeing that tree-lined street you remember riding your bike down, as well as it can be the memory of the rocks your climbed behind your grandparent’s house when you were a kid.

So while our children cannot share our memories, feelings, or love for what I declare as my home, someday they will find their own home in their hearts with their own memories. And I’ll be a part of that – not through anything that I did or created or asked them to remember, but just through that feeling of turning the corner or climbing that hill or spotting that building that means that they’ve come home again.

I fear my kids are following my example. Sometimes I don’t think that Eloise sleeps at all. I think she just lies motionless and awake in bed waiting for someone to tell her that she can get up. Sometimes at 5:30 as I’m downstairs still dripping sweat from my run, lifting weights or writing a column, she sneaks downstairs and quietly sits on the couch and tells that I can just ignore her until it’s really the usual time that she’s suppose to be up.

Astrid is not that quiet. This morning at 5:45 she yelled for me from her bed “Mommy, I need a glass of water RIGHT NOW!” Which pretty much meant she wasn’t going back to sleep, so I put her on the couch with water and a cat and an episode of something so I could finish my workout.

And I don’t feel selfish about that one bit.

I spend nearly 24×7 in this house caring for children, so I need that 60 minutes or so each morning of MY OWN to work out and drink a pot of coffee if I want to, and dammit, I’m going to take it. I know the days are short and all of that…but she can wait with the cat for 15 more minutes until I’m done.

Because then I’m going to kiss her up and down and snuggle her and not let her go for like forever. Because that’s how yummy she is. She knows that. And frankly she loves some mindless TV in the morning when the light is low and she’s just waking up.

Don’t tell me anything different. My mind is comforted this way.

Esther is my child that I have to force out of bed. I’ll bet you a million dollars that she’s the one who will want to sleep past noon when she’s a teenager.

“Just five more minutes, Mom. Just five more minutes.” Is her mantra when I wake her each morning for school. Sometimes I have to pull off all of her covers and yell in her ear. She’s my Saturday-sleeper-inner and thankfully makes us enjoy some quiet and lazy moments more than I give myself permission to.  I try to thank her for that and apologize to her for the moments that I have to rush her. She’s not the rushing type.

Tonight Esther wanted to sleep in Astrid’s bed. Sometimes the big girls do that. I like when it’s Esther and not Eloise, because I fully believe Eloise and Astrid just plot all night about how early they can come downstairs. Hopefully Esther’s calm and sleepy aura will make Astrid sleep until at least 7 tomorrow morning.

I doubt it. But it’s worth a try, because I have so much coffee to drink tomorrow.

Just write.

I can’t believe I’m saying those words – but yes, Listen To Your Mother will debut in Minneapolis on May 9th. I currently feel like the luckiest person in the word. Lucky that I’m involved in such a movement as this one that celebrates motherhood through all of it’s good, bad, laughable, sad and downright silly. Lucky that I’ve gotten to know my new lifelong friends even better…and I can now stalk them comfortably and they won’t think twice about it.

Lucky that we have such a great community in the Twin Cities that supports the arts, the written word, the spoken word, the theaters, the everyday moms and dads and kids. Lucky that we have an amazing cast for our show who is going to wow you and make your cry one moment and the next they will make you stand up and cheer. Their brave, beautiful and incredible stories are going to be told. Told.

Next week.

Lucky that I have a family that supports these endeavors, the long Google chats, the midnight emails, the trips to Target for chocolate, the time away for auditions and rehearsals. Lucky that I know Ann, the woman who started this all and let me be even a small part of the wow.

Lucky for the press we’ve received, honored to help our local charity, and overwhelmed by our local sponsors who also believe in this show and in our community.

I’m also lucky to have a gorgeous dress to wear for the evening from my favorite local St. Paul shop – Poppy Togs and Clogs. It’s my go-to place for dresses, scarves and jewelry. Jill knows my style and always has a great selection and great tips for styling.

So to get ready to show my arms and tighten my abs, I’ve been planking every day. As a LTYM team, we’ve decided that daily planking is required for the next week. I’ve stepped it up a bit though and added a cat on my back for extra difficulty.

Cat-back planking will soon be all the rage. Trust me.

But whether you plank with a cat, or frankly plank at all, I hope you’ll join us next Thursday night, May 9th for LTYM-Twin Cities!

Tickets to Listen To Your Mother – Twin Cities are for sale still at $15 each, and will be $20(cash) at the door. Come join us and enjoy an evening of celebration. I promise it will make you want to stand up and voice your story. It’s truly an honor to be in this space, this time, this community right now.

Happy May. Happy Mother’s Day. xo