Nominate a Mother You Know for the Walmart Canada Mom of the Year Award #MOTY

I don’t think there’s any more amazing job than being a mother. It’s both the most difficult and the most rewarding task that a woman can undertake. But there are some women that take motherhood to a whole new level of awesomeness and honouring those women is just why the Walmart Canada Mom of the Year Award was created.

I have to admit that when I first heard about this fabulous new annual award from Walmart Canada, I had a hard time figuring out whom I might want to nominate for this award. I’m honoured to know so many amazing mothers and I couldn’t imagine choosing just one for something so special. But then one day I realized that I knew the perfect woman for this award after all; a woman that has been a mother not just to one or two, but to dozens of kids that were all in need of care, special attention and, most of all, love.

Kimberly Skidmore is the adoptive mother of some absolutely fantastic children and has been a compassionate and dedicated foster mother to many, many more. Her oldest child was a few years younger than me when I attended school and now one of her younger children (notice I didn’t say youngest!) is in the same grade as my son. The fact that she has been taking in needy children for so long shows just how dedicated she is to enriching the lives of children that have been deprived of love for far too long.

But her story is far more amazing than that. When Kim and her husband first decided to adopt, they could have waited for that perfect little baby that so many couples dream about. But instead they decided that their goal would be to give love to the children that needed it most. So they adopted children with special needs, children that nobody else wanted to care for, children that agencies considered “unadoptable.” The fact that caring for these children would require a tremendous amount of additional work didn’t matter to Kim in the slightest. The only thing that mattered to her was that they needed love and she had love to give. Two of the first boys that she adopted were preschoolers that couldn’t speak, had only ever known neglect and were so fearful each meal would be their last that they hid every item of food that they were given. Today they are two of the happiest, healthiest and most charming young men I have ever had the pleasure to know.

And to this day, Kim’s endless energy and bottomless heart are still changing the lives of children in need. Seeing her with a new precious little baby or a bright-eyed child is simultaneously heartbreaking and heart-warming, because while it is incredibly sad that those children had such horrible starts to their lives, it is so wonderful to know that they have the chance for a happier future because of Kim. I honestly do not believe that there is a woman in the world that deserves the title of “Mom of the Year” more than Kim Skidmore. In my eyes, she’s won it already.

If you know a special deserving mother like Kim, why not nominate her for this new annual award sponsored by Walmart Canada? It’s a fabulous way to honour those women that go above and beyond each and every day to enrich the lives of everyone around them. And best of all, the winner and runners-up of this award don’t just receive a very generous $10,000 prize for themselves. The Mom of the Year receives $100,000 for her favourite charity and the runners-up receive $10,000 for their charity of choice as well! So nominate a special woman today and show her how much you care by giving her a chance to be chosen as Walmart Canada’s first-ever Mom of the Year!

Disclosure: I’m part of the Walmart program by Mom Central. I received compensation as a thank you for my participation. The opinions on this blog are my own. Mom of the Year Award: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY Internet access and valid email account required. Nominations open May 10, 2012 to July 8, 2012 for legal residents of Canada over the age of majority. Entrants cannot nominate themselves. One (1) grand prize available to be won consisting of $10,000 cash, a $100,000 donation by Wal-mart Canada Corp. to charity/cause and a trip to Toronto (ARV $22,000). Seven (7) runner-up prizes available to be won consisting of $10,000 cash, a $10,000 donation to charity/cause and a trip to Toronto (ARV $22,000). Charity/cause subject to verification and final approval by Wal-mart Canada Corp., at its sole discretion. Odds of winning depend on how the judging panel evaluates each entry according to the criteria. For Official Contest Rules and to nominate an entrant, visit [www.momoftheyear.ca].