The Other Side of Love

With the “official love month” winding down, I’ve recently traveled to the other side of love wondering what the people who we hold so dear to us think about us.

Ladies, we are so, extremely hard on ourselves. And the worst part about that is, while some of us are comparing ourselves to others (which is such a hard standard to live up to) – most of us are on own worst enemies. We are comparing ourselves to some standard that exists in our heads, and it’s a standard that no one else even knows exists, at times, except for us.

Dr. Kristin Neff sums it up like this in her article, Why ARE Women So Hard on Themselves?: “Research shows that women are generally kinder, more nurturing and empathetic to others than men. At the same time, they’re meaner, more dismissive, and critical of themselves.” She goes on to conclude: “We have to dismiss the notion that others are worthy of kindness and we are not.”

With that in mind, I challenged myself and some of our Rocket City Mom writers to ask their children a series of questions to see what they loved most about their mommy, and I invite you to do the same. And when you hear the answers, don’t be surprised or alarmed; just enjoy the fact that someone loves YOU just as much as you love others. It’s the other side of love that needs to be embraced just as much as the love you give out every day.

I’ll start.

Meet Kristen (mom) and Kayna

What do you love most about your mommy? How she hangs out with me.
What’s your favorite fun thing to do with mommy? Hanging out and watching the singers and dancers on TV.
What’s the favorite thing that mommy cooks? Grilled Cheese
What’s the best place that mommy has ever taken you? Red Robin
You feel happiest when mommy… Hangs out with me.
What’s the funniest thing mommy has ever done? Made silly faces and pretended she’s a cartoon!

Meet Lexie (mom) and Alex

What do you love most about your mommy? The way she smells.
What’s your favorite fun thing to do with mommy? Play (board) games.
What’s the favorite thing that mommy cooks? Tacos.
What’s the best place that mommy has ever taken you? On a big ship with a slide (we took him on a cruise a few years ago).
You feel happiest when mommy… Makes me pancakes, and makes a special heart pancake for me.
What’s the funniest thing mommy has ever done? Have a dance party in our computer room with me.

Meet Taralyn (mom) and Gabby

What do you love most about your mommy? She is funny and smart and the best mom I ever had.
What’s your favorite fun thing to do with mommy? Going to the movies and I like it when she tickles me.
What’s the favorite thing that mommy cooks? Carrot soup and quiche.
What’s the best place that mommy has ever taken you? Opryland Hotel at Christmas time.
You feel happiest when… Mommy hugs me and gives me kisses.
What’s the funniest thing she has ever done? When mommy talked with a [Scottish] accent for a whole day after we saw Brave.

Meet Stephenie (mom) and Finn

What do you love most about me? You have good cooking.
What is my favorite feature? Your arm. I like to hug it.
What’s your favorite fun thing to do with me? Family movie night at home.
What’s the favorite thing that mommy cooks? Meatloaf!
What’s the best place that mommy has ever taken you? To go see plays in the theatre, like “Christmas Carol” and “Robin Hood”.
You feel happiest when mommy does… When you make me feel better when I’m sad and you say “Have no fear, mommy’s here!”