Recovering from Mother's Day

I must say Mother's Days are getting better now that I'm older! Oh, I miss all the little homemade crafts and cards that were always a part of this day, and I'd give anything to go back and enjoy an hour or two of cuddling my babies. (My 18 year old son doesn't like cuddling anymore - I don't understand it!) But let's face it....mothers still end up doing stuff for their kids on mother's day and don't truly get a break from all of their duties. No offense to those who are still in the diaper stages or running your kids all over the planet....but I'm enjoying my kids being adults now! I think it's just because my body is running out of steam. I can actually truly enjoy a relaxing day on 'my' day. And that's what I did. The restaurant dinner was enjoyed Saturday night, and Sunday BBQ was cooked by my husband. I enjoyed my easy chair, my tea, my birds and chipmunk, my magazine, the beautiful weather, my family, my kids' friends who dropped by, an NHL playoff game. Twas nice indeed. Until bedtime. The first mistake was staying up until almost 2 am talking with my daughter. (That's what you do with adult children.) I crawled into bed, trying not to wake my husband.

The dog, who always sleeps on the bed with us (we can't change this habit of hers.....we've tried!!), stayed downstairs and just when I was nodding off, she began to bark. (This is a dog who only barks at other animals - if there were a thief lurking outside she would not bark!). I went downstairs and settled her down...rationalizing with her that there was nothing out there. Of course when I went back to bed, she started up again. She would not relent. Finally my husband in frustration, picked up the dog (no easy feat), put her on our bed and shut the door. He went back to sleep. The dog settled for maybe 10 minutes, then started whining and crying, and wanting off the bed. I settled her down. She started again. This went on for the next half hour. I was so exhausted and angry at her because this is so unlike her. Finally I took her downstairs and closed the curtains on the window- they normally remain open. She was finally quiet since she couldn't see anything out the windows. So I ask you. Do I not still have a baby in the house? In fairness to the dog, my husband has recently spotted a visiting skunk near our pond....can't blame the dog for barking at such a strange kitty. Thankfully, Mondays are my day off so I could sleep in a little today. I threw in a load of laundry before driving my daughter back to her home and found something in my son's shirt pocket that reminded me of mothering when he was little. Here's a picture of what I found.

If you're not sure what it is....it's a clam. Yes. A clam. He works at a seafood restaurant and had a very interesting smelling clam in his pocket. I am so grateful I found it before throwing it in the washing machine. Not too long ago I washed my son's wallet and all of its contents survived... but I don't know what kind of mess would have ensued from a clam!

All stages of mothering have moments when memories are made. Enjoy every one of them Moms!

"Before becoming a mother I had a hundred theories on how to bring up children. Now I have seven children and only one theory: love them, especially when they least deserve to be loved."- Kate Samperi

"Motherhood brings as much joy as ever, but it still brings boredom, exhaustion, and sorrow too. Nothing else ever will make you as happy or as sad, as proud or as tired, for nothing is quite as hard as helping a person develop his own individuality especially while you struggle to keep your own."-Marguerite Kelly and Elia Parsons