"Pretty is as pretty does."

Which I heard not only my Mother say often, but my grandmother.

Our saying about restrooms was Never pass up an opportunity. I’ll try to think of something wise that my mother said but hers were generally critical. I do remember her saying don’t buy a bed with a footboard, just get a headboard and now that I have a bed with a footboard, I would agree with her.

She said "better to be an old man's darling, than a young man's slave". I wanted to marry a 60 yr old rancher, but she changed her tune and I ended up marrying the young man.

"Be courteous to everyone equally." I've tried to reinforce this in myself by silently thinking of the Hawaiian greeting of "Aloha" when I encounter someone. "Aloha" conveys your recognition of the person's intrinsic value as a fellow human being.

Mom’s words of wisdom...

“A place for everything, and everything in its place!”

When tackling a seemingly unending or unattainable task... “Eat that elephant one bite at a time.”

(Neither of us would ever eat, use parts of, or in anyway harm an elephant, but it’s a great saying!)

"Get your nose out of that book and go play outside!"

I still have my nose in a book a lot.

Behave, you never know who is watching.

You get what you pay for.

Dedtired, my mother said that too, about the bed, and she was right.

My aunt said that, when on a road trip, stop for afternoon coffee at a hotel (back when they had coffee shops). The service is usually nice and but mainly because the hotel lobby restrooms are clean!

You better shape up or I will knock you into next week.

Change your underwear in case you get hit by a bus.

My mom said a lot of those sayings. Esecially the one about clean undies.

She also said this when I was returning to college after breaks, "Remember, better safe than sorry." She was referring to safe sex and birth control.

"There's at least a little bit of good in everyone, if you take the time to look for it."

My Dad: "Don't confuse me with the facts, my mind is made up". Usually voiced when one of us kids had a clearly outrageous opinion, or were defending a poor choice of behavior by ourselves or someone else.

I do think of it sometimes, in today's political climate.

pudgeder, my mother used to say that,too !

My Mom had a lot of sayings, but there's one in particular that I remember. When someone would mention a married couple who were both not likeable people or nice people, she would say" Well, at least they didn't ruin two houses". I didn't understand what she meant until I got older. She meant it was a good thing they were together, instead of each of them being married to someone else and making them miserable.

My favorite Mom-ism - "Don't get down in the mud with the pigs."

And her doozie, "It's just as easy to fall in love with a rich man as it is a poor man."

moosemac, my grandma used to say that to me too; it's just as easy to fall in love with a rich man as it is with a poor man. Did I listen? No.

Another one was "Good fences make for good neighbors"

I used to tell my always fighting with each other kids when they would come running to me, with MOM MOM MOM! She did xyz to me! I would listen to the cases on both sides then issue the verdict. Of course, one side was always upset with the verdict I would give, with lots of But But But!! Then I would say, This is not a democracy. Which meant court session was over and I was not hearing anymore arguments. They both remember that and to this day they say Mom is the President of (insert house address here).

Birds of a feather flock together. I did not understand what that meant until adulthood.

You catch more flies with honey than vinegar.

Hold your horses.

Not really a word of wisdom, but I always loved how my mother would wake the house up. “Time to Rise & Shine Girls!”

When we’d fight with each other, my Father would always say, “you should treat each other better, no one will ever be there for you the way your family will.” So true!

Another was “If your not willing to work for it, it’s not worth having.”

My mother would tell me, familiarity breeds contempt. I really disliked hearing that when I young.

Chew with your mouth closed!

My mom had so many. I'd rather tell you my grandmother's, since Mom was very often silly (it beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick).

If you act at least half as nice as you look, you'll end up okay.

Sushipup: A dear friend of mine has a similar saying : NPP--as in never pass porcelain!

Favorite saying from my Mom: "Two wrongs don't make a right". Wise words!

go ask your dad

Mom's recipe for building wealth: Buy gold....and properties. ☺

Regarding the historical events of the week, Mom would say “All good things are worth waiting for”.

My Mom generally said, "I hope when you grow up you have a daughter just like you!" It wasn't a compliment :-/

The other saying I remember best was, "If I'm working my butt off, you don't get to sit on yours and watch me. Get moving!" I must admit, I used that one on my daughter :-) She turned out pretty good :-D

hahaha collenoz: My mom used to say, "Someday you'll have children." NOT advice or a compliment! ☺ Also, "Eat your food. Children are starving in China/Africa."

I really love reading these. My mom had some gems too but of course at the moment the only ones that come to mind are some of the ones shared here already. What a great thread.

When I was fussing over something about my appearance, she'd say "it'll never be noticed on a galloping cow."

Also if there was a moment of immodesty, like walking past an open window in your underwear, she'd say " well if they've never seen it before they won't know what it is, and if they have they shouldn't be surprised." Not sure about the wisdom of that one!

Ha ha! Colleen! My Mom would say the same thing. 5 girls and we all drove her nutty. I did have a daughter, she’s like me, but she’s also a lot like my Mom! Fortunately she was always a really good kid.

My favourite was, "Always make your bed in the morning. You never know when you might need a place to collapse."

Marry in haste, repent in leisure.

My mother said, "never bother an animal when they are eating. It is the most important part of their day....leave them alone.". Not exactly words of wisdom, but it does make sense. My father said, "never pet someone else's dog".....also good advice. Never ceases to amaze me how people will stick their hand in a strange dog's face. I don't pet other people's dogs. Oh sure....if a dog belongs to a friend and knows me, but if I see a dog like in PetSmart or somewhere like that where people take their dogs, I may comment what a cute dog, or something like that, but I never touch it.

Even before I was dating, my father told me to be sure to hold hands with a boy. It took awhile before I understood what he meant. Initially I thought he was a very cool, open minded dad. My mother's advice was to go out with girlfriends, stay with the girlfriends, and go home with the girlfriends.

In some ways my mom could be so confusing. When we were in a store, she'd say "Keep your hands out of your pockets, you don't want them to think you're shop lifting." Other times I'd be fretting about my looks, or clothes, or whatever, she'd say "Why do you care what other people think?" Well, which is it -- either I'm supposed to care, or not supposed to care, make up your mind!