Move over Santa Claus. My mom has eyes in the back of her head. I swear to it. She knows everything. Sees everything. Hears everything.

I learned this early on, when I was about 9 or 10. When I was growing up and playing with friends, there was this “rule” that I couldn’t/shouldn’t go inside my friends’ houses and vice versa. I never understood what the big deal was then.

So, one day, my mom had gone somewhere and the house was going to be empty. I can’t recall where my mom was going, but I do remember that wherever it was, I’d expect her to be gone for at least 30 minutes. That was just enough time to “have a party” (as my mom would call it). After my mom left, I remember calling my friends (like 2-3 of them) to come over. I remember being in the kitchen and I think we were eating or something. Then, all of a sudden, I hear the door to the garage open.

BUSTED!

My mom didn’t appear mad (in the presence of my friends), but later I got an earful.

Then there was the time I was having a fight with my best friend. I was standing on the porch near the front door and yelling at her. I was, again, about 10, and yelling the “f” word. Just at that moment, my mom opened the door. I don’t know why, but even to this day, I feel embarrassed if some expletive slips out in the presence of my mom (or anyone in my immediate family for that matter).

I think my mom had an advantage of a lot of the other moms because she was a stay-at-home mom. This meant just about nothing could get past her, much to my dismay at times. Back then, I didn’t appreciate all the things she did: cooked, cleaned and drove me to and from school. I remember she’d clean my room and prevent me from going in it, except to sleep. I’ve never been the most neat and tidy person (I’m much unlike my brother and sister), even now. But it’s funny how the things my mom wanted me to do, I get annoyed when my boyfriend doesn’t do it (e.g., make the bed).

As this blog grows, I know I’ll have more to write about when it comes to my mom. My mom is the only one who has been there all my life. She has attended all of my graduation ceremonies (elementary through college) and the different milestones in my life.

One thing I want to mention is that she’s going “home” in a few weeks, and I’m extremely nervous about it. For about 7 whole weeks, I won’t have a lot of contact with her due to the distance and resources available. When she went back about 10 years ago, she was gone for about a month, and it was really strange. I will need a lot of distraction, especially since this will be the first time she won’t be here during the holidays.

I used to question a lot about why my mom had the rules that she had, but now that I’m older, I can understand why. She was doing the best that she could, and I think that’s all any parent can do. There’s no handbook. You go with what you know and go with what you think is right.

Lesson learned: I’ll only have one mom in my life. She has done so much more for me than I realize. My mom’s the best!