Two thoughts: Mom

Kate has called me Mom for about six months now. Not Momma. Not Mommy. Mom. When she's whining, she sounds fourteen already. Mike is Daddy. My mom is Nana. Me? I'm just mom.

Kate's a mom now, too. A mom to every baby doll she sees. She rocks them, slings them and shushes them with expertise. She walks them back and forth several times and then she lays them down and tells them, "night-night." She has the slight bounce in her step and gentle shake that all parents instinctively use with newborns down to a tee. It's almost scary. 25 years, give or take, and my life could be hers...