While Mother’s Day is a wonderful day to celebrate moms and the sacrifice they make for their children, more often than not, birth mothers are left feeling unworthy of the special day.

In the 1990s, May 12, 1990, to be exact, the First Inaugural Celebration for Birth Mother’s Day was celebrated in Seattle, WA., on the Saturday preceding Mother’s Day. It was created as a mindful tribute to recognize birth mothers who chose to place their children for adoption. While the origin of this holiday was created as a day of reflection and commiseration, it has morphed into a day for others touched by adoption to recognize the important role a birth mother plays.

Mothers are honored for the love and devotion, the care they show their children. But birth mothers are often overlooked on Mother’s Day, as they aren’t the ones who wake up in the middle of the night to soothe their children back into peaceful sleep. What birth mother’s do, however, is place their children with parents who are able to give their children the best lives possible. They make a sacrifice for the well-being of their child, while also helping a family grow. Birth mothers give their children life.  Adoptive parents give them wings.

Whatever the reason your child’s birth mother placed her child with you, she still felt all the emotions of a new mother, as you did: the immediate maternal attachment, unwilling self-doubt, and fear of being inadequate. Birth mothers are still mothers, just in a different way.

This Birth Mother’s Day (May 11, 2024), let’s CELEBRATE Birth Mothers!!!