To me, being a mom means putting others before yourself, making sure they have everything they need, and trying your hardest to give them everything they want. It means making sure that others are safe and happy, and to expect the unexpected by having a solution when all hell breaks loose. As a little girl, I always thought about what it would be like to grow up, find the guy of my dreams, have a few children, and raise the most perfect little family. There is so much for a mother to teach her children, but more importantly, it is a mother's job to protect her children. As a full time college student, working part time, and focused on her career, I could not be more sure that I am so not ready to reach that point in my life yet. However, I know I will be ready when the time comes because I have had more than enough practice taking care of my friends.

Everyone knows moms fix everything, often times by carrying everything, and being the "mom" of your friend group is no different. Since taking on the role of being a friend mom, my bag has gained a couple items including:

- band-aids to make boo boos better

- extra hair elastics so no one's hair falls in their face, the toilet or worse

- water bottles for a quick sober-up

- flip flops to replace heels after a long night

- garbage bags for those who just can't make it to the toilet

While the two are a little different, being a mom and playing a mom to your friends share quite a few similarities. Both are responsibilities that include preparing, packing and sometimes even feeding snacks to people who are incapable of feeding themselves. The job includes being the sober one at the party, being the designated driver, and making sure no one does anything too stupid. It also occasionally means waking up in the middle of the night to make fast food runs. Being a friend mom means making sure everyone makes it home safe, is changed into something comfortable to sleep in, is cleaned up, fed, and has a place to sleep. Often times, being a mom means doing things you don't want to do- things like cleaning up after God knows what, giving up things that you would like to have for those who need them more than you, and just doing things that you might not really want to do, but that you know that you need to do.

As the "mom" of my friend group, it is important for me to acknowledge why I'm the friend mom. I wouldn't be able to hold this role if it weren't for my mother. Over the years, she has taught me everything that I have needed to know in order to survive, in order to take care of others, and most importantly, she has taught me what it means to love and be loved. Being a mom is something that you do for those you love; for those who you would do anything for. After a rough night, my friends thank me, but the thanks all comes back to my mom.