Mama told me there'd be days like this...

...which is to say, good ones.

It has been a lovely Mother's Day. I was allowed to sleep in (sort of), and we had decided we would go out for brunch today. This is a Mothers' Day tradition we last tried in 2000, when we tried to take Andrew's mother (and me) to Skates in Berkeley. We'd made a reservation and arrived 10 minutes early, and then had to wait more than an hour for our table. With a 17 month old. Not good. But I digress.

Today as I languorously stretched in my bed, alone, and began to ponder getting out of it, a small (fully dressed) boy crept into my room and asked, "Mama, when are we going to grunch?" This was at about 7:30 (I did say sort of, and this is late in our house), and the restaurant didn't open until 10! But we had a nice easy morning. I was given an abundance of handmade gifts and cards from my children and husband. It may be cliche, but the things the kids make are treasures. We eventually got to the restaurant at 10:05 and had a scrumptious "grunch," including two mimosas for me! Yippee!

It was a beautiful day ~ perfect weather, really. After "grunch" Andrew and Evan headed up to Berkeley to visit Granny Mary and then do a bit of manly fishing. Lydia and I stayed home, which was exactly what I wanted to do. She worked on her state report (on Missouri) and I did lots of tidying and sorting and clearing out that sounds dreadful and dull when I write it but was actually very satisfying. I've filled several recycling bags and added to our large pile of give-away items, and I've got lots of paperwork filed away where I can actually find it again when I need it. It was a productive and peaceful afternoon for the ladies of the house.

I also had a loooong conversation with an old friend (and fellow mom), which brightened my day so much. I spoke with my mom, and later with my brother ~ it always feels good to check in. My sister is in Italy (lucky girl!) so she and I will have to exchange Mothers' Day wishes when her cell phone minutes aren't being billed at international rates.

Lydia made me a delicious late lunch: an egg salad sandwich featuring eggs from our chickens (she made the whole salad herself, from boiling the eggs to chopping and mixing all the ingredients, including juice squeezed from a lemon off our tree) and romaine lettuce from our garden. So yummy!

Andrew and Evan returned shortly after our late lunch. In case anyone is interested, the fishing the report was that Evan caught a bat ray and Andrew got skunked. And Evan still needs to work on his good sportsmanship, because he was quite vocal about the discrepancy in their record. I then headed to the grocery alone (I know, another lame event, but one I genuinely enjoy), where I was complimented by no fewer than four people on how nice I looked, and perfect strangers wished me a Happy Mother's Day.

Now I've got one kid in bed and another on her way, and I'm getting ready for a(nother) busy week. All in all I realize I have much to appreciate, and I am happy in my skin tonight.

Cheers!