I'm sure that when many of us think of Mother's Day thoughts of personalized gifts for mom and Mother's Day cards fill our heads. And some of us are even thinking of all the party invitations to Mother's Day related events and dinners that we've received. Yes, believe it or not Mother's Day is a huge deal!! Honestly, I never knew how truly big Mother's Day was until I became a mom myself.

And no it wasn't because of the gifts, the cards or all the kind words I received from husband, family and friends. I tell anyone who'll listen that motherhood has really changed and impacted my life in a way that nothing else has or could have. As this Mother's Day 2011 approaches I'm taking the time to reflect on some of the valuable lessons that I've learned thus far like:

~Any woman can be a mother but it takes truly responsible, capable, loving and willing individual to be a mom

~Creating life is the greatest magic trick God has enable us to have

~Patience, happiness and sanity go hand in hand

~The journey to a strong spiritual foundation and personal relationship with God is learned by the example we set

~Save every Mother's Day card because children grow so fast and this way we'll have reminders of how much they love us once they fly the nest

~Even children like know they appreciated no matter how small, big, young or old they are

~Teaching children about their roots is the key to establishing self acceptance, self love and appreciation for where they are now

~Listen to what your children are saying instead of telling them what you think they're saying

~Encourage them to dream

~Saying 'I love you' is a big deal

~Allow children to make mistakes because life is about learning lessons

~Starting your own family traditions helps to make great memories

~Be yourself and your children will love you more for it

I'm sure that as I continue on this motherhood journey, I will learn new lessons. How has being a mom impacted your life? What lessons have you learned?