MOTHER'S DAY

Yesterday was Mother's Day. Mothers all over the country were waking up to breakfast in bed. They were greeted with flowers and jewelry, hugs and kisses from adoring husbands and children. They were taken out to restaurants for all their meals, didn't lift a finger, and had a day of pampering to thank them for all the hard work they do every day of their lives. Fortunately for my beloved Big Daddy, I don't care about those things.

By the time I woke up sandwiched between my little cherubs, my husband had already eaten his cold cereal and finished up the baked ziti. He was out delivering his special, homemade meatballs to our neighbors. So, I got up, made the kids a nutritious breakfast of Goldfish and macaroni and cheese (fortified with pureed squash, a la Missy Chase Lapine's The Sneaky Chef), and put the dog out. By the time my husband came back, I was reclining in front of the tv, and the girls were playing in the kitchen. Suddenly, Bean came running into the living room saying, "Malik made a big, big mess!" (Malik is our ancient Cocker Spaniel). Sure enough, Malik had gotten into a garbage bag on the back porch, and garbage was strewn from one end of the porch to the other. I looked at the garbage, surveyed the sink full of dirty dishes from our dinner party on Saturday night, and watched as Cakes smeared Goldfish and macaroni all over the breakfast bar. That is when I decided I wanted to go out for lunch on Mother's Day.

It being Mother's Day, the restaurants were, of course, all packed to overflowing. Wait times were creeping up on two hours. Since I'm not too picky about where I eat, I opted for a nearby (and near empty) deli, where we feasted on grilled cheese and avocado sandwiches. Then, Big Daddy thought of a perfect Mother's Day gift. And we were off .... to Home Depot and Tractor Supply Company. We spent the next three hours looking at weedwhackers and rototillers, until we finally settled on purchasing some peppermint plants and a yellow tomato plant for our soon-to-be-planted garden.

I told Big Daddy that his Father's Day gift was going to be a bouquet of flowers and a waffle iron.

That night, as I picked up garbage from the back porch, washed a sink full of dishes, and wrestled the girls into their pajamas, I couldn't think of a better way to spend Mother's Day than by being with my wonderful husband ...



... and our beautiful girls.