By DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills

Do you have a favorite Mom or Dad quote that you’ve passed on?

Recently, I was at my son’s home and his precious wife told one of the kids who couldn’t find something in the fridge to “look with his hands.” I laughed and told her that’s what I’d told my sons. She said my son was the one who started it.

Favorite Mom and Dad Quotes

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I posed the same question on Facebook and asked for favorite and unusual Mom and Dad quotes. The responses had me admiring and laughing at the wit and wisdom and I couldn’t resist sharing with you.

“My mom once told me to say something poetic since no one was talking during dinner!”
I was always irritated when I asked my dad for the definition of a word. He would always tell me to, “Look it up. The smartest person in the room is not the one that knows everything but knows where to get the information.” I told my daughter the same thing most of the time.
“Think before you speak.”
From my mom, “Leave it better than you found it.” Now my grands say it. It means so much more than just a place. She left others better than she found them. We are better for her quiet diligence, unwavering faith, and loyalty. So much more.
My Mom had 5 children in 8 years. On more than one occasion, I remember her response when asked, “Where are you going?” “Crazy, you want to come?”
My mom always said, “You can make of yourself whatsoever you wish—if you work.”
From my husband’s mother—“Be thrifty.” “Sit little.”
From my mother—from her mother—“Cain’t never could do nothin’.”
“It’s not enough to know; you need to DO!”
If we weren’t moving fast enough for her, my mom would say, “Move like you’re alive!”
When something tasted really good, Dad would say, “That’s so good, it makes your tongue slap your brains out!”
When something worked really well or was pretty cool, he’d say, “Well, that’s slicker than snot on a doorknob!”
“If you love someone or appreciate them, don’t fail to tell them.”
“You can’t hoot with the owls on Saturday night and fly with the eagles on Sunday morning.”
Mom would say, “Just do it.”
My mom always said, ”Money doesn’t grow on trees. You have to work for it.”
My Dad used to say, “For a good corn crop it should be knee high by the Fourth of July!” Well, I don’t grow corn, Dad, but good to know!
My mom, with her heavy Spanish accent, “Get up and try again!”
Or, if we complained about something hurting (my finger hurts, my head hurts…), she’d always tease, “It won’t hurt anymore if we cut it off.”
Or if we were pouting, “A bird is going to poop on your lip.” (Can you tell she didn’t tolerate whining very much?)
Yup. Did all of those with mine.
My dad was a Phi Beta Kappa and very philosophical. He’d say, “Nothing can disturb the calm poise of my regnant soul.“ For the longest time, I thought he was saying “pregnant soul.“
“If you lie down with dogs, you’ll get up with fleas.” Referring to choosing wisely who you spend time with and who your friends are.
My grandmother always said when I was struggling with someone who treated me badly and wanted to lash out at them, “Don’t get into a stinkin’ match with a skunk, it’s his business!”
“It’s never really lost until Mom can’t find it!”
My mom often said, “If you can’t say something good about someone, don’t say anything at all.”
My grandma used to say, “There is a little insanity in all of us.” She married a man from St. Louis. Right after the marriage, he came back with five kids. She didn’t know about them. It was her second marriage, and she already had five kids. Guess she had a reason to say it.
“Stop fighting his hands. He’s trying to mold you.”
“Lean into Him – He is at your front, back and sides – on this you can always rely.”

Do you have a favorite Mom or Dad quote? Let’s share!

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