Contest!

I have no bigger cheerleader in life than my mom.

I've always known that, but it was confirmed again the other day. She called because she'd seen a commercial for a contest she wanted me to enter. She said, "There's a contest about being a 24/7 mom. You're that, and they have some great prizes. You need to enter." She called back later with the website address. Oh dear.

It just feels a little odd entering a contest touting your motherliness. But when I looked at the prizes -a 7 night Mediterranean cruise, or 24 spa treatments, or 24 days of house cleaning - they all sound really nice. And somebody has to win them.  The reality is that you can't win if you don't enter. And I told myself, "You don't have to say you're an amazing mother (though I try to be a good one), you just need to focus on the 24/7 aspect." And, Vitamin C is a good vitamin. I'm for it.  So, Ester-C-The Better Vitamin C 24/7 Mom Contest, here I come.

My options for this contest: a 30 second or less video, or a photo with a 150 word or less essay. I decided the photo/essay was the route for me. When I looked at some of the submissions, I decided I needed something that was a little different from the basic paragraph. A poem, maybe? Now my kids are saying "Oh dear."

Here's the 83 word poem I wrote.

Those souls whose heart beats began in me,

Who God fashioned and carefully framed,

Who I knew and loved before I held,

Before they were even named.

Growing and learning, spreading their wings,

When they fly my heart soars too,

I cheer and pray and cry when they weep.

Moms who love, this is what they do.

The days, the hours, the moments tick by,

22 years of 24/7s.

I’ve loved them hard, loved them soft.

I’ve done my best this side of heaven.

After I wrote this, I had Elizabeth come over and read it.  I wanted to hear what she thought.

After seeing this picture, it won't surprise you that Elizabeth said she liked it, but it was too serious. She then immediately went over to the kitchen table and wrote her own 92 word submission.

Super Mom

By: Elizabeth Harris

With six kids there is always lots to do

My mom cooks, cleans, and gets on to.

In this house, it’s never a bore.

Could she ever love us more?

I could not do half what she does

She’s the queen bee, and with her buzz

she keeps us in line

And still manages to be so fine.

I’m so glad God gave me her.

Without my mom, life would be a blur.

She is by my side when I cry.

She makes my spirit fly sky high.

I thought about entering both of them, but 83+92=175. That's 25 words too many. But you know what I realized after I thought about this for a couple of seconds? Elizabeth's wins, hands down. And I've already won, before I've even entered.