Let’s hear it for the moms.

Happy Mother’s Day! To all the moms, mamas, nonnas, nanis, tias and others who shaped us into who we are today. I am lucky enough to have spent most of my life surrounded by a group of bad a$$ women.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the other sex as well, but, being surrounded by women who just don’t give up or surrender, well that is the secret ingredient for me.

So humor me while I shout out to the mothers and others who make my world turn. (Not all mamas in the literal sense; they make me a better mama and person. And what is a mama if not that?)

My mom. The matching outfits still make me laugh. She gave me, and continues to give me, all I’ve ever needed creatively. She lit the spark of making in me from the earliest years. Letting me experiment with every possible medium, never limiting my desire to try the next thing. For what I am artistically today, she encouraged and fueled every bit of it.

Pioneers in their own right, and clearly fashion forward, this crew shaped my early years. When I think of who I am now, there are literally distinct qualities that grew from each of the women in this very photo (and others who had already headed to the after party).

And later on, this crew, with whom I made it through the early elementary years.

And the contemporary mamas. The help you make it through the teenage years mamas. The aunts with better advice. I wouldn’t have made it without them. The ‘I’m not your mom, but I’ll take care of you mamas.”

Soccer stress mamas. (What to Expect When You’re Expecting should have a whole chapter preparing you for sports, but I digress)

My Tuscan Market mamas. The keep you standing, love you unconditionally. Save you from the people who think your paintings are uteruses mamas (you HAD to be there).

WBL Mamas. The mamas who ground you, support you, build you up.

My best friend forever. Savior of the first order mama. My middle of the nightmare, life preserver mama.

My SIL, Ann, who has no choice but to be in the thick of it with me mama. If this photo does not exemplify everything it feels like being a mom, I don’t know what does.

A tale of two moms. Mine and Steve’s. There could not be to more different women. But together they shaped the two of us, my husband and myself, into the people we are today. These two phtotos always remind me of their differences, but also of their combined impact into the life I have today.

Speaking of Steve……I cannot leave him out of my love letter. After all, he’s my partner on this parenting journey and why I am a mom in the first place. I am a better mom because of him. It’s quite a ride, this motherhood game and sometimes I get a little loud while careening through all the hills and valleys.

He’s always there to tell me to simmer down- when I need it most.

And the reason I’m a mom. These two, who inspire me every day to be a better version of myself, take things less seriously, and are immensely patient as I try to learn new things.

There’s “a lot” to being a mom. Not the kind of “a lot” that requires the saccharine sweet adulation that sometimes accompanies this day. The “a lot” that requires a whole village of mamas to help you cross the ever moving finish line.

For these partners in this path, I am ever grateful.

I hope you find yourself today, surrounded by the love of those who help you on this journey. And if you find yourself alone on that path, come join our tribe, there’s plenty of room.

Mamas, I love you all.

A love letter to the mamas.......

maria devito palmer designs, llc

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