'I'm the mother, that's why': Reflecting on the quirkiness and wisdom of motherhood

Mother expressions run the gamut of familiar advice.

”If everybody jumps off the bridge, will you do it, too?” 

“I’m the mother; that’s why.” 

“We have food at home.”

These and other motherly quips have lasting resonance — not always positive.

“If you came to my mom and told her you were bored, you got assigned a cleaning task. Can't be bored washing the windows, you know?” Carissa Burk, author of “The Little Green Book of Mothers’ Wisdom” told Under the Radar.

This Mother’s Day we reflect on the sayings, quotes and expressions that both nurture and challenge our relationship with mom. 

Rachel Marie Martin, author of “Mom Enough: Inspiring Letters for the Wonderfully Exhausting but Totally Normal Days of Motherhood,” says that ultimately, motherhood is about doing your best. She said you can find value even in your mistakes.

“Learning from it [a mistake] and really learning to embrace the other women that get to walk this journey with you — and walking hand in hand without the judging, but with the loving and knowing that they too are really trying to do their best,” she said.

GUESTS

Carissa Burk, CEO of Creative Green Living Media Group, author of “The Little Green Book of Mothers' Wisdom”

Rachel Marie Martin, founder of findingjoy.net and author of “Mom Enough: Inspiring Letters for the Wonderfully Exhausting but Totally Normal Days of Motherhood”