Okay, I need to start off by apologizing to my mother because she's reading this and this is definitely not the article she hoped for.

But seriously. My mom is crazy. And I wouldn't have it any other way. Who else would have taught me to put vinegar on anything and everything on my body that hurts or won't heal up? Mosquito bites? Vinegar is the game changer. Stops the itch right away.

Without my mother, I wouldn't have learned to be patient with people who repeat themselves. If she could remember the amount of times that she told me about her friend the nurse, who is from Russia, she'd be mortified and never tell it to anyone ever again.

She hates the actual process of traveling, but being on vacation is her favorite thing to do. She likes getting pedicures and haircuts, and one time James Spader checked her out after she got her hair done at The Four Seasons in Seattle and she tells my best friend Alex every time we talk about the Blacklist while I'm on the phone. She also cried for days when she found out Robert Redford and Meryl Streep were married.

Everyone knows my mother as the woman who is always put together, always prim and proper, and wants everything to be done well and done right. But I know my mother as an awesome woman who is super funny, can be the shadiest person in the room, and always, without fail, will gravitate towards the most expensive pair of shoes in Nordstroms.

My mom is one of the many in a long line of very strong Greek women, and is teaching me to be the same. She has dealt with so much in her life, and still gets up every morning and continues on the same as before. She exhibits strength in everything she does, even when she is not feeling strong.