Happy Mother's Day
I figured out a few years ago that the way to get the kind of Mother's Day I could enjoy is to do it myself. I generally have as much family as I can lure to my house, and I feed them well.
This year, the logistics were a little more complex than in the past since my mother's health is so poor. Last Thursday afternoon, I drove to Lancaster to help my parents pack (not that my dad needed much more than moral support). Then on Friday morning I left my car there and drove them back to my house in their Subaru. My sister Charlotte arrived from Stockton early in the evening, and her daughter Alex, along with her son, and my brother Bob arrived late that night. Alex met someone she knew on the plane, so she managed to get a ride to our house, but Charlotte and I went to the Van Nuys Flyaway bus terminal to get Bob. I think it was nearly two o'clock in the morning before I finally got everyone situated in various sofa beds and air beds and was able to hit the sack myself.
On Saturday I got up in time to fix breakfast, but when all of my guests but my parents went out to do some shopping, I suggested they take a nap and did the same myself. Fortunately I woke up before the Homo Sapiens Yoyo group got together here to write up their zoo project. I managed to start lunch (spaghetti) before the guys arrived, and after I ate I popped in at intervals to make sure they were staying on track. It took them several hours, and I began to think we were going to have a couple of extras at dinner (I had even started a couple of tritip roasts). Fortunately, they managed to finish before the meat was done, and we were able to clear the study stuff off the dining table and set it for dinner.
This morning my family was waiting when I came downstairs for me to fix breakfast. It took me a little while to get everything together to do this, and while I fixed the omelets for those who didn't care for mushrooms, Bob and Charlotte took the baby and walked around to the nearby grocery store and got some for the rest of us. I had bought some English Farmhouse Cheddar, and it made a superb omelet cheese; everyone but Glen had some (he eats his omelets plain). Because I had fresh strawberries, my dad (or maybe it was Lee) requested waffles to put them on, so I got the Van's Belgian toaster waffles out of the freezer in the garage. It's a little too much work to make fresh waffles when I'm making cook-to-order omelets.
While I was in the kitchen, Alex gave me a card "For an Aunt Who's a Blessing," and it almost made me cry. It was very sweet. She also had cards for her mother and grandma, but I didn't get a chance to see those. Glen had gotten his grandmother a neck pillow specially designed to use on a recliner chair: it has a strip of non-slip fabric that drapes over the back of the chair that holds it in place. My sons and husband got me a necklace and earring set - a very elegant sterling silver Mickey Mouse design. Besides the family weekend, I did some scrapbook pages for my mother's scrapbook. I had photos from our England trip, photos from Charlotte's scuba diving and some pictures I got of our sister Rebecca's family from their online photo album. Bob had said he'd send me some pictures, but he hadn't, so I just had a nice background in place for his family.
I had barely recovered from breakfast when my mother asked if I could take them home today. For me, it wouldn't make much difference whether I took them today or tomorrow, except that tomorrow they'd have to wait until I got Alex and Bob back to the Flyaway, one at about 6:45 a.m. and the other at about 10:00 a.m. So I said, "Sure." Charlotte had to leave to return to Stockton, and she decided that she could detour slightly through Lancaster, taking Bob, Alex and the baby with her. Then when I returned, I could bring the three of them back with me. That way, she'd have more time with her daughter and grandson, and I'd have company on the way back.
My dad was quite disappointed at having to leave a full day earlier than he had expected, but he didn't argue. He did try to get people to stay at his house longer, but since Mother left my house due to exhaustion, staying didn't seem like a good idea. I was particularly sorry that he didn't have more time with Bob, since they hadn't seen each other since Mother's Day last year. Bob is hoping to come out for a longer visit a little later this year, though.
I plan to go to bed early tonight.
This year, the logistics were a little more complex than in the past since my mother's health is so poor. Last Thursday afternoon, I drove to Lancaster to help my parents pack (not that my dad needed much more than moral support). Then on Friday morning I left my car there and drove them back to my house in their Subaru. My sister Charlotte arrived from Stockton early in the evening, and her daughter Alex, along with her son, and my brother Bob arrived late that night. Alex met someone she knew on the plane, so she managed to get a ride to our house, but Charlotte and I went to the Van Nuys Flyaway bus terminal to get Bob. I think it was nearly two o'clock in the morning before I finally got everyone situated in various sofa beds and air beds and was able to hit the sack myself.
On Saturday I got up in time to fix breakfast, but when all of my guests but my parents went out to do some shopping, I suggested they take a nap and did the same myself. Fortunately I woke up before the Homo Sapiens Yoyo group got together here to write up their zoo project. I managed to start lunch (spaghetti) before the guys arrived, and after I ate I popped in at intervals to make sure they were staying on track. It took them several hours, and I began to think we were going to have a couple of extras at dinner (I had even started a couple of tritip roasts). Fortunately, they managed to finish before the meat was done, and we were able to clear the study stuff off the dining table and set it for dinner.
This morning my family was waiting when I came downstairs for me to fix breakfast. It took me a little while to get everything together to do this, and while I fixed the omelets for those who didn't care for mushrooms, Bob and Charlotte took the baby and walked around to the nearby grocery store and got some for the rest of us. I had bought some English Farmhouse Cheddar, and it made a superb omelet cheese; everyone but Glen had some (he eats his omelets plain). Because I had fresh strawberries, my dad (or maybe it was Lee) requested waffles to put them on, so I got the Van's Belgian toaster waffles out of the freezer in the garage. It's a little too much work to make fresh waffles when I'm making cook-to-order omelets.
While I was in the kitchen, Alex gave me a card "For an Aunt Who's a Blessing," and it almost made me cry. It was very sweet. She also had cards for her mother and grandma, but I didn't get a chance to see those. Glen had gotten his grandmother a neck pillow specially designed to use on a recliner chair: it has a strip of non-slip fabric that drapes over the back of the chair that holds it in place. My sons and husband got me a necklace and earring set - a very elegant sterling silver Mickey Mouse design. Besides the family weekend, I did some scrapbook pages for my mother's scrapbook. I had photos from our England trip, photos from Charlotte's scuba diving and some pictures I got of our sister Rebecca's family from their online photo album. Bob had said he'd send me some pictures, but he hadn't, so I just had a nice background in place for his family.
I had barely recovered from breakfast when my mother asked if I could take them home today. For me, it wouldn't make much difference whether I took them today or tomorrow, except that tomorrow they'd have to wait until I got Alex and Bob back to the Flyaway, one at about 6:45 a.m. and the other at about 10:00 a.m. So I said, "Sure." Charlotte had to leave to return to Stockton, and she decided that she could detour slightly through Lancaster, taking Bob, Alex and the baby with her. Then when I returned, I could bring the three of them back with me. That way, she'd have more time with her daughter and grandson, and I'd have company on the way back.
My dad was quite disappointed at having to leave a full day earlier than he had expected, but he didn't argue. He did try to get people to stay at his house longer, but since Mother left my house due to exhaustion, staying didn't seem like a good idea. I was particularly sorry that he didn't have more time with Bob, since they hadn't seen each other since Mother's Day last year. Bob is hoping to come out for a longer visit a little later this year, though.
I plan to go to bed early tonight.
posted by Jeannette | 7:16 PM
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