A few words of advice from Marilyn...

Based on the theme of this week's "Every Monday Matters: What matter's most?" task, I thought what better opportunity to talk about my family, the number one item on my list. Although my entire family makes for plenty of entertaining stories, I don't think there is anyone quite like my mother, Maryilyn.

A little background about Marilyn: she was born in Hampton, NE, and went on to graduate from UNL as an elementary music teacher. While marching in the UNL band, she met my father, Steve, who was tall, gangly, and funny/sarcastic, so obviously she ended up marrying him. Marilyn spent most of her early career in Seward, NE where she had two lovely daughters :) ,who in her eyes, should've always been 'farm girls' just like herself, but the move to the "Big City" affected us in a materialistic way. LINCOLN, NEBRASKA had really done us in. We were no longer as successful as we could've been at Seward High School (obviously, there are 25 other people in a class to compare us to, not hard), the traffic was terrible, and unlike our mother, we were spared several chores and spankings throughout our childhood.

Like most, after divorcing from Steve and several years of 'trying to work it out' (which in reality screwed us girls up even more!), Marilyn found herself giving out more advice than when we were children. Advice which she might need to take herself.

A few great tips from my mother:

• "Claire, make a list of Pros and Cons to decide if you want to break up with _____, if the con side is bigger, it's easy, dump him."
• Claire- "Mom, I think I could marry _____(NOT my ex, Tyler)____." Marilyn- "How's Tyler?"
• "Stupid."
• "I knew he wasn't right for you Claire, he reminds me of your dad." - Marilyn
• "Buncha weirdos out there." - after a few dates on match.com.
• "No wonder you can't remember anything, it's all those vodka shots...oops, spilled my beer."
• "You're gonna start paying the water and electric bill if you don't stop taking so many showers and leaving things plugged in." - Marilyn to me. I was 16.
• "I went over to your house to feed Chipper, you're gonna be mad at me...I unplugged a few things in your house." - I get home to find EVERY plug in my house unplugged.
•  "I don't get out much." Marilyn to the waitor/waitress every time we go out to dinner
• "She called me during Wheel (of Fortune), of course I'm not going to answer."
• "Lezzies"- referencing to Lesbians.
• "Claire, someone murdered Chipper (my cat). I called the police this morning."
• About cigarettes- "I don't actually inhale."
• Claire-"Mom! What the hell is that on the porch?" Marilyn- "Oh, that's the Possum I feed."

It's not many mothers that sit outside with you and your friends and talk for hours about anything and everything, leave the house when you say you're going to have a party, or support you in ANYTHING you have experienced or will experience. There are plenty of stories and quotes from my mother, but the best part about her is knowing her and her amazing heart. If you know me, you know my mother. ;)

Marilyn

I LOVE MY MOM!