Blogs

If you are Christian and not living under a rock, then you know Ash Wednesday was last month. It's the beginning of 40 days and 40 nights of the religious season known as Lent, culminating eight long weeks later on Easter Sunday.

During Lent, all Christians are supposed to give up and deny themselves of certain luxuries as a form of penance or punishment for what Christ went through dying on the cross.

Simply put, it is that time of the year to give up your bad habits!

Raising my hand in the air as a Christian mom, I struggle each year with what to give up for Lent.

My ever-so-thoughtful husband cleverly suggested NO NAGGING for the next eight weeks, while I countered with having him give up not losing his cool over things that he has no control over. I'm dying to see him keep his cool with the two little princesses, who have a penchant for making that large vein in his head throb and want to explode before most days have barely begun.

Even though I have what I am giving up (thank you, dear husband), I thought there might still be some undecided moms out there.

Here are 10 surefire ideas:

1. Eating a cold meal with each and every daily food intake, because cold must mean amazingly tasty.

2. Replacing the toilet paper roll every time the last person to use it chooses to ignore the need to replace it.

3. Cleaning up all sorts of catastrophic messes or taking out the garbage, because a mom equals garbage person.

4. Waking up early every morning whether you have to or not, because mornings are the best part of the day if you are under 4 feet tall.

5. Enduring long drawn-out bedtimes that last until the wee hours of the morning with all sorts of excuses why the little tyrants kids won't go to bed.

6. Being interrupted while doing anything, especially once you are holding a phone in your hand.

7. Being the keeper to lost items, because if it is lost, then mom must know where it is.

8. Being the on-call chauffeur to all 24-7, no matter the time of the day, month or year.

9. Mediating fights over anything you could possibly imagine under the moon and stars.

10. Battling homework getting done, because homework is cruel and unusual punishment for little people, and moms just don't seem to understand that.

I know you are thinking, how on earth are you going to give up these most amazing, daily treasures that you so enjoy?

But wait, hang on, she must be kidding and it isn't even April Fool's Day yet!

OK, never mind. This is called being mom and if we were to give up any of these, we might lose our "mommy cards."

Happy Lenten season, one and all! Now, where is spring? This mom is so over illnesses, ice, freakishly cold weather and snow that has left my kids being home from school more then they actually have attended.

If I make to Easter Sunday in one piece, I think I deserve a medal or at least a little hug.

- Janine Huldie

Janine Huldie was a certified professional middle school math teacher who became a stay-at-home mom after having her second daughter. She blogs at Confessions of A Mommyaholic and runs her own graphic design company at J9 Designs. Find Janine on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.