The Kind of Mom Who...

I want to be the kind of mom who...

...rides on roller coasters with my boys.

My own beloved mother wasn't this kind of mom; rather, she was the "I'll patiently wait here and hold your backpack and smile cheerfully and wave as you go zooming past, but I'll keep my feet on solid ground, thank you very much" kind of mom. I love her and respect her and appreciate her and think she's incredible.

But I? I want to be the kind of mom who says "Yes!" when my boys ask, "Can we go on it just one more time?"...and "Of course!" when they beg, "Can we sit in the front of the roller coaster this time?"
I want to be the kind of mom who says, "Are you going to raise your hands in the air this time? I am! The whole way!" I want to scream on the hills and laugh around the curves and crack up when we get off and look at the pictures the automatic cameras take and see the goofy expressions on our faces and the ridiculous way my hair looks.

I want to be that kind of mom.

The track is waiting.
Here we come!

I want to be that kind of mom to my beloved Josiah...

...to my adored David...

...to my sweetheart Tobin...

...and to my precious Shav.

I want to be the kind of mom who eagerly goes on carousels, understanding the high drama that it is for a two year-old to go up and down on his horse, fully participating in the imaginations of my boys, not scoffing at the idea that the picture of a lion painted on the carousel is really Aslan, and that David is sitting in a chariot and driving a white horse, and that Tobin and Josiah are really having a race.

I want to go on the swings - the high swings - with my only son who is tall enough to ride with me.
I want to embrace the feeling of soaring and being out-of-control.
I want to enjoy the ride and not worry about how I look to the world.

I want to walk through mist just because.
Just because it's hot, and the water feels good, and the toddler in my arms loves it.

I want to be the kind of mom who races down the hills, unafraid of the splash at the bottom, saying, "Who cares if we get wet? Sure, my hair will get messed up; and yes, my clothes might get soaked. But it's only water!"
I want to be that kind of mom.

And yesterday, I was.