Long hours turn into long days and then into long years. But most mothers tell you it is worth every second.
On Mother’s Day, most moms will get a card filled with words telling them how much their time meant to their children.
In a bit of switch, the Telegram asked moms what they thought was the most unexpected aspect of being a mom. These are their words.
-- Tiana Charanza of Salado
“I never thought I would attend a monster truck show and let me tell you, you haven’t ever had to work so hard to keep track of 6-year-olds until they all had ear plugs in their ears. They didn’t listen before and they didn’t listen then,” she said.
Her monster truck enthusiast also realized that cars have to be crushed for them to truly be run over by a monster truck. So Ms. Charanza watched as her son took a hammer and smashed toy cars for his monster truck.
“He only hit his hand twice,” she said with a smile. “Now we have a box of crushed cars.”
Ms. Charanza is the mother of three.
-- Jessica Lovett of Salado
Ms. Lovett’s son hasn’t pulled many unexpected surprises on her yet, but she did make a lifestyle change she never thought would happen.
“I gave up touring in a rock band,” she said. “I was with one band already and could have toured with another. I wouldn’t change a thing though.”
Ms. Lovett is the mother of one.
-- Sandi Jezek of Temple
Ms. Jezek never expected to have children back in the house after her kids were already grown up. After her son was married, he and his wife moved back home and she helped raise a grandchild.
“The second time around has been easier though,” Ms. Jezek said. “You know what to expect after all the fun from the first one.”
Ms. Jezek is the mother of three.
-- Ami Stone of Salado
Ms. Stone was diagnosed with breast cancer when one of her children was 6 months old. She said her most unexpected moment came from not worrying about the little things anymore.
“It just made me appreciate everything from the bubble baths that get everywhere to the chocolate all over the couch. Things that should aggravate you, like screaming in the car, don’t anymore. Money doesn’t matter anymore either. I’d live on Ramen noodles just to make sure they have what they need,” she said.
Ms. Stone is the mother of two.
-- Julia Pauliga of Temple
Ms. Pauliga is a self-described hippie and could only wonder what her children might do to shock her.
“My daughter came home from a dance club and told me about a man she met,” she said. “He wore a velvet dress. She said she liked him because only a real man would wear a dress. That was a good shock.”
As a child, her daughter would spend as much time in or around swimming pools as possible and eventually found a spot as a member of an underwater hockey team.
“Didn’t expect that either,” she said.
One other moment she remembers is when she received a draft notice for her daughter.
“I didn’t think spelling her name J-O-D-Y meant she was boy,” she said with a laugh.
Ms. Pauliga is the mother of two.
-- Janet Dyer of Temple
Sometimes the circumstances around a child’s birth are unexpected.
“It snowed the day my son was born, right here in Temple,” Ms. Dyer said. “It was Dec. 9, 1986.”
Ms. Dyer also remembered how her late mother supported her as she pursued a life in music.
“But once I had children, the music kind of stopped,” she said. “It’s has definitely been worth it though.”
Now Ms. Dyer gets to support her daughter as she sings, the same way her mother supported her.
Ms. Dyer is the mother of three.
-- Delphine Vasilinda of Temple
“My children went on a vacation up the West Coast and into Canada and one of my sons didn’t come back,” Ms. Vasilinda said.
Her son met a woman and eventually married her and “he’s still up there,” she said.
Ms. Vasilinda is the mother of five.
