Mother's Day 2014
Before church on Sunday we took our yearly photo in front of the house for Mother's Day. Mark and I study the photos from years past to see what changes we've made to our flower beds. We're nerdy like that and make odd observations. We've taken photos in front of the house since Will was born. We can't break tradition now. Who knows, in a year or two hopefully we'll be taking the photos in front of a new house.
The boys are looking big here. My goodness! I'm holding their hands to keep them still.
I had to include this photo because they were both saying as loudly as possible "Happy Mother's Day!!!" It made me laugh. I should do a post of outtakes and you'd really laugh. I'm waving at the neighbors as they drive by in one of the photos.
Saturday night we went to the girlie restaurant of my choosing. I chose La Madeleine, which is a French Bakery and Cafe. We also went to Trader Joe's at my request. We made stops at two different Whole Foods, too. All the time, the boys were good sports. They were being extra nice to me.
The weekend wasn't all about me. We took the boys to the Lego Store in between stops at Whole Foods. We didn't buy anything but Ben got a lot of ideas for his birthday. He has a wish list a mile long!
These guys know the way to my heart. A cinnamon twist from the donut shop. I like the sweet handwritten note from Mark. He didn't want me to share it, but since he doesn't read my blog, he'll never know, ha!
Sunday afternoon I watched chick flicks (do you spot Notting Hill), ironed and did laundry. You might think that's not fun on Mother's Day, but it was actually just what I wanted. I didn't want to go to lunch and fight the crowds. We'd picked up Sushi for me and Will the night before and Ben and Mark had leftovers. We got to spend the entire afternoon at home. It was really relaxing. I'll have a better week since I got time to catch up on house work and start the week with the laundry done. That's a true mom's dream. Seriously!
Mother's Day is bittersweet. Physically Mama Winnie is still with us, but mentally she is not herself. She is in the nursing home because of Alzheimer's. We didn't visit her this weekend. I feel so much guilt because I don't visit her that often. We used to see her a lot more, but her mind has quickly deteriorated in the last year. She doesn't know us, and I'm afraid her actions will scare Will and Ben. It's a very sad situation. I find comfort in looking at old photos and seeing her in her prime. She looks amazing in this photo. I think she's so beautiful and happy here.
I reflected on Instagram. I shared the photos on Facebook, but I couldn't bring myself to put my feelings out there. Here's what I wrote for this photo that I shared on IG,
"This is me and my grandmother, Mama Winnie. Mama Winnie raised me and I can't begin to share all the valuable life lessons she taught me. I'm so lucky to have been raised by such a selfless and loving woman. She currently lives in a nursing home because of Alzheimer's. She doesn't know us anymore, but we still have all of the special memories of her to fill our hearts."
If anyone has suffered loss, loss of a parent or child, then holidays like Mother's Day are difficult. Each person handles their sadness differently, I choose to think about all the good in my life and not focus on the sad parts. God's blessed me more than I ever could have imagined. I'm thankful for Mama Winnie, for my wonderful mother-in-law Carol, my sweet sisters-in-laws, all the dear friends and relatives I have who are examples of how to be a good mother. Not a single one of us is perfect, but we all love our children with all we have and that's what matters most.
This is a BEAUTIFUL post!!!
ReplyDeleteHope it was a great day for you with your boys.
ReplyDeleteI totally get the desire to have Mother's Day at home. We did the same. I asked my husband to spend the day helping me to finish decorating my son's room. That was my day. But it feels so good to have him in a space perfect for him. Happy kids, happy mom!
ReplyDeleteMy aunt is dealing with this awful disease. It began probably 5 or so years ago (when she was in her 60s) when I noticed she'd started forgetting little things - asking the name of my sister's boyfriend 3 times in a 30 minute period, forgetting hair appointments, etc. It's gotten much worse and in the past year she has rapidly declined. I saw her last weekend and I know she didn't know me, but she didn't ask who I was. She's still "playing the game" at this point. She had no idea who my boys were either, but she just asked me to remind her of their names and asked if they were both mine. The big thing that I noticed, though, was that she said (while holding my youngest) that she has asked her husband over and over for a baby. Whew! She has two boys - in their forties - so I think she's living her newlywed years over again. It's sad to see it happen. I feel SO sad for my uncle. He won't accept help but also won't leave her by herself so I'm sure it's a 24/7 job to keep her safe. I'm clinging to the good memories, too. It's sad to see! Glad you had a good Mother's Day in spite of the sadness!
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