One whiff of Chanel No. 5 and I'm back in my parents' bedroom, admiring my mom as she did her makeup to go out for a nice dinner with my dad.
Scientists will tell you that nothing brings back memories like scents. Even stronger than a song, a smell can transport you right back to a specific time and place.
Although my nest is now empty, I've found I can reminisce about my kids' childhood this Mother's Day by spritzing these scents from Demeter Fragrance Library, which are the next best thing to going back in time. In some ways, they may actually be better.
Scent: Pure Soap
Memory: Rocking my just-bathed babies to sleep.
Scent: Play-Doh
Memory: Buying the giant variety pack, only to have my son empty out each container and mush all the colors together in one big disgusting ball that was never used again.
Scent: Glue
Memory: My kids doing art projects on the wooden kitchen table, accidentally gluing them to the table and ripping off pieces of wood along with their paper.
Scent: Baby Powder
Memory: My daughter pouring it all over the floor, only to have our Newfoundland roll around in it.
Scent: Gin & Tonic
Memory: My husband leaving me alone with two preschoolers and a dog when he went on a business trip to Australia.
Scent: Dirt
Memory: We used to have white carpet.
Scent: Snow
Memory: Sledding down the hill in Central Park with my snow-suited little Eskimos laughing and screaming all the way.
Scent: Laundromat
Memory: Is there any place a mom spends more time?
Scent: Birthday Cake
Memory: One of my son's friends admitting he wasn't supposed to have chocolate after consuming an extra large slice, then throwing it back up.
Scent: Thunderstorm
Memory: My 60 pound daughter sitting under the table with our 130 pound Newfoundland, telling her not to be scared.
Scent: Pizza
Memory: Dinner.
Scent: Crayon
Memory: Back-to-school shopping and a new box of Crayola 64s every September.
Scent: Daisy
Memory: My son presenting me with one "because I love you, mommy" after a walk in the park.
Scent: Cotton Candy
Memory: My daughter's sticky hands as she hugged me for taking her to the fair.
Scent: Sandalwood
Memory: My son getting ready for the prom.
Scent: First Response -- Boston
Memory: My daughter texting me from college 3000 miles away to say she was okay but a bomb had gone off at the Marathon.
Scent: Sex on the Beach
Memory: We became parents.
Wishing you all a scent-sational Mother's Day!
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