Happy Mother's Day

My adoptive mom at age 16.

And at age 45. I think her hairstyle made her look older here. I remember the lacquer she used to get her hair to stand up and wave like that.  It might as well have been glue - that's what it felt like. I remember that suit; she also had a hat made to match it.

I have posted photos of my birth mother on my blog, but I don't have time to search for them now. I really look a lot like she did in her 60's and 70's, but my younger daughter is her spitting image when she was 17, the year I was born.

 

Odds and Ends

I hope you can spend the day basking in the love or the memories of your mother and/or your children!

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To the anonymous piece of crap who sends me (and some of you) long diatribes about "the gods" and Heaven knows what all = cease and desist! I will delete forever each and every piece of spam you post as a comment on my blog, and I never read past the first line. So there!

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There's a lot to be said for having a day when you do nothing you don't want to do!! But I didn't laze all day; this morning I weeded a little and pruned some bushes that had gotten overgrown since we have had so much rain this spring. Last year the drought was so bad that virtually nothing grew, and pruning was seldom needed. I had two forsythias that were about to eat my deck and the corner of my house, so they were cut back sharply. The irises had bloomed and there is nothing sadder to me than a bed of irises with empty stems rising well above the foliage, so I cut them down to size. What I call a flower bed here is a pale shadow of what they ought to be, but they do look a little bit better now. I'd be embarrassed for you to see them, however. I should be ashamed! I suppose it is a little bit like the plumber's wife who always has a stopped up sink. This florist deals with cut flowers, not growing ones (sadly).

I went out to the grocery store, intending to make side visits to the bank, post office, drycleaner and druggist and got sidelined at Kohl's with a 15% off coupon and sales in every department! I should have had my camera (how many times have I said that?!) because in the dressing rooms was a small, pretty girl, probably 3 1/2 or 4. She had on a new plaid sundress; one with a full skirt and she was twirling in front of the 3-way mirror and admiring herself on every pass! I asked her if the dress was new (though I could see the tags under her arm) and she replied...."Yes, my Mommy is going to buy it for me." I said, You look so pretty; don't you love getting new clothes?" and she vigorously nodded her head and ran off to see her mom, who was trying on clothes too. I wish I could show her to you. I love little girls at the age of four. My favorite photo of myself was taken at four (I was queen of the world at that point).

Anyway, I never made it to the grocery until after mr. kenju and I went to the health club and made good use of the hot tub and the pool, which were the perfect temperature today. I felt like a limp dishrag afterward and that was exactly how I wanted to feel! We had a quick dinner at Chipotle (burrito for him and tacos for me) and I finally made it to the store, where I had intended to get only a few things to "tide us over the weekend" and came away having spent $117. Where did it all go? There sure weren't many bags to carry in. No matter, it will mostly be gone after my children and grandchildren come to visit tomorrow, even though they are bringing our meal with them. I hope each and every mother has a wonderful day tomorrow - we definitely deserve it!

It's New (Again)

Some of you have mentioned the new header and the photo, and now you see I have replaced it. I think you can expect that to happen frequently, now that I know how to do it. The new pic was taken on the horse farm I talked about last week. I cannot imagine a more bucolic or serene place, and I wish I could go there every week to unwind from the cares of daily life. Surely it would be easy in such a place.

The flower shop was a hot bed of activity today; Mother's Day arrangements, corsages and boutonnnieres for a Father-Daughter Dance and for First Communion, and additional everyday stuff to do. The phone rang constantly and the wire-service fax machine worked overtime, as children and husbands sought to honor their mothers/wives. One man ordered flowers to be sent to his adult daughters, wishing them a happy Mother's Day. I thought that was a lovely gesture. Someone asked this week if my family members send me flowers. No, at my request they don't. It would be like carrying coals to Newcastle (as we say) and I would spend at least ten minutes critiquing the arrangement anyway.....LOL. I don't expect anything but a card for Mother's Day, but had they asked, I would be inclined to want a gift card to be used for spa services like facials and massages. If I were being very practical, I'd ask for $$$ to pay off my gasoline bill! Two of my children (and all the grandchildren) will be here on Sunday to visit, and they are bringing food, which is an idea I welcome after I worked so hard this week. Tomorrow will be spent doing nothing I don't want to do, and I hope I can spend some time in a hot tub and pool, just relaxing. I might even get the time to visit all of you!

How Griffin Got Lucky!

When my friend A___ married my friend J___, she owned a brown spaniel mix dog named Benson. Benson had curly hair like a poodle, and it was soft and cuddly. He weighed about 40-50 lbs. and he was a wonderful pet. About 2 months ago, Benson passed away, leaving both of them sad beyond belief. They didn't think they wanted to get another dog right away, so they resigned themselves to being dog-less.

About 2 weeks ago, J said to A: "I think we ought to think about getting another dog. We are just too sad." A agreed and it was decided that they would begin a search for the perfect dog.

Later that night, J had a dream, which he told A about on waking: Someone had come to their home and taken J out to the garage. "Look up in the rafters" he said, and when J looked, there were four dogs up there.

A asked, "What did they look like?" and J said that he could only remember one of them - a gray and scruffy-looking mutt.

That morning, after they had gone to work together at their business, a friend called, telling them that she wanted to bring a dog to see them. He had been at the SPCA for 29 days and was scheduled to be gassed on the 30th day, if no one adopted him. This friend was from a rescue agency, and she knew that this dog was too good to let die. So she brought him to their business to visit, and he has never left their side! They named him Griffin, and I met him this week. He is the sweetest, calmest, 2 yr. old gray and scruffy-looking mutt I've ever met. He allowed me to scratch his cheeks, while looking up at me with a big smile on his face which seemed to say, "I have landed in Heaven here, and I know it".

I think he has.

(If I can get a good photo of Griffin, I'll post it asap.)

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HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY !! TO:

birth mothers

adoptive mothers

mothers-to-be

foster mothers

surrogate mothers

Godmothers

grandmothers

great-grandmothers

wannabe mothers

and anyone I have left out!