Earlier this month, I did one of those “Mom Things” that all mothers find themselves doing… jumping in and helping out.

My daughter Audrey had been invited to a fashion event in New York City.  This event was an evening function, making it impossible to hop on a train back to Rhode Island after the event.  Audrey wanted to be home for her 4 little guys the next morning.

That’s when the “Mom Thing” came into play. I suggested that I drive her into the City.  I love spending those 3 or so hours alone with her, talking about life and business and things… and I could grab dinner or sit in a cafe and read while she attended her event.  Audrey was on-board.  It sounded like a plan.

When I travel to the City for not-much-but-sit-and-wait, I dress very comfortably.  And this was East Coast early March. I’m talkin’ sweat pants, fleece, old hooded puffer coat, flats and whatever mittens I can grab… in a pony tail and a touch of lip gloss.

Problem is… Audrey felt badly about me sitting in some restaurant or cafe for who-knows-how-long (I didn’t feel badly at all, by the way), well into the evening.  She contacted her contact to see if I could attend the event.  The contact thought that would be wonderful, but she had to check with someone above her.  Then above her.  And so on.  (Remember that I was very happy with my original plan!)

Anyway, the afternoon of the event arrived and Audrey still hadn’t heard about me.  The guest list was rather small and exclusive and it seemed that no-one was in charge!

That’s when I did another “Mom Thing.”  I dressed for the event… just in case.  And by dressing for the event, that meant nice hair, full-on make-up, black stockings, 4″ black boots, wool skirt, lovely sweater, black dress coat, cashmere scarf, black leather gloves.  I had to drive in this attire because there is no way I’ll stop along the interstate to change at a rest stop.  Uh, uh.

So into the City we headed on a very, very frigid March afternoon.  Did I mention frigid?

I must say that we both looked pretty good, albeit very similarly dressed.  We hadn’t done the Fashion 911 on who’s-wearing-what.  We both ended up wearing black stockings, high black boots, black dress coats and black leather gloves.  Fortunately, underneath we were quite differently styled!

We talked while I drove.  We laughed.  We even sang a little.  About half-way into our journey, we both needed to use a restroom.  I stopped at the next stop and we dashed our way to the door.  There we were, all high-heeled and dressed to kill in black, both wearing make-up and sunglasses… heading into McDonald’s, shivering in our not-so-warm dressy stuff and laughing like girls.

An elderly man slowly heading out the door held the door for us, whistled a flirtatious little whistle and said, “Well! You two must be sisters!”

Audrey and I both smiled nice big smiles .  We were happy to oblige his adorable observation, if not altogether wrong observation!

But you know what?  That man made me stop to think… stop to think about some significant changes I had recently made in life and in my health.  I had begun to work with the Puristics team, trying anti-aging products that are pure and free of potentially harmful chemicals.  I had begun a vigilant study of labels on each and every food product, cleaning product and personal care I brought into my home.  I had begun training for a marathon… something I never, ever imagined doing.  I was eating smarter and more carefully, and caring for myself, my family and my home smarter and more carefully.

I had been feeling healthier.  Free-er, if that’s a word.  Better.  Both from the inside-out and the outside-in.  Seemingly little changes had added up to a whole lot.  I realized that I had a little extra skip in my step.  A bigger smile.  A bit smoother face.  Maybe this is what that nice elderly man saw… not the extra make-up, sunglasses and 4″ stilettos!

When Audrey and I got back to my car, we laughed some more.  Sisters, huh!?

But I was to have one more “Mom Thing” waiting for me in New York City.  I parked my car.  We walked.  And walked.  And walked to the event. When Audrey checked into the event, she was told no guests. She felt just awful.

Me?  I took the the streets in my 4″ heels and coat and lovely clothes underneath, maneuvered past random snowbanks and hissing buildings in the cold, cold of the evening in the City… with an extra kick in my step… and found a cozy cafe just around a couple of corners from Audrey’s event.

I didn’t feel awful at all.  I felt like a darn good Mom… ahem, Sister!

Thanks, Puristics… for a better me!  (Maybe not quite sister me, but definitely better me!)

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Disclosure: We at Mom Generations are honored to be spokespeople for Puristics. We are being compensated for representing the brand; however, all opinions are mine and I stand by them!