Suzanne in ABQ Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Am I the only mom in the world who's idea of a perfect Mother's Day gift is to have the whole house all to myself? I hate eating out on Mom's Day, fighting the crowds. I don't want flowers and gifts telling me I'm a wonderful mom. My kids and dh tell me that almost everyday. We've never made a big deal out of Mother's Day or Father's Day. Dh calls them Hallmark Holidays, and just doesn't buy into the whole thing. He believes moms need to be appreciated everyday, and he and the kids do that very well. But, sometimes, after tripping over kids 24/7, I just wish that I could go two hours without hearing, "Hey, Mom?" Today, dh helped the kids clean up the house, and then took them all away! It's wonderful! What bliss. I'm not sure what to do with myself. Watch a movie? Download HSTrackerPlus? Do some ironing? Take a nap? Hmmm. Anyway, I'm enjoying not celebrating mother's day. Am I the only one who's best way to celebrate being a mom is to not be a mom for a little while? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K&Rs Mom Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Am I the only one who's best way to celebrate being a mom is to not be a mom for a little while? :iagree: I pointed out the irony of this to dh today. He was trying to convince me to go out to dinner, until I pointed out that it's not much of a treat for me if it's the opposite of what I want to do! I did get a large part of yesterday off, because today we were busy with other stuff, and I enjoyed the quiet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmegan Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 That's what we did today, too! But I've been going through a really rough time lately with DD's separation anxiety. It's been going on for MONTHS and I cannot even walk in the general direction of the door without her screaming bloody murder. And then it takes about 1/2 an hour to calm her down. It's really started to get to me. So I told DH what I wanted was to be left alone all day! It was nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa at Home Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 :iagree: My family gave me gifts and then they left. Now I'm home alone goofing off, and I am one happy woman! Dh knows how to make me happy!:) ~Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcconnellboys Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Yeah, we avoid the crowds by going out on Saturday, instead (I *do* like to eat out, LOL). Today, my husband made me brownies and the boys brought me a canister of mint chocolate pirouettes, a big 'ol Hershey bar, bag of dark chocolate pomegranates, and a new bottle of Kahlua. Then they left me alone to veg all day.......Ahhhhhh...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plaid Dad Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 I took my dw out to dinner last night, sans dd, and today our big gift to her was an hour of alone time at Starbuck's with the latest copy of Mothering. She said it was the nicest Mother's Day she's ever had. :) I don't much care about Father's Day either. I like to have it acknowledged, but I don't expect gifts or fussing. We spend so much of our time together as a family that these holidays seem kind of superfluous to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracey in TX Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 I opted out of brunch, favoring a good novel. While running errands we drove past a Middle Eastern restaurant, so DH recommended eating there. It was delicious--and not crowded :) DH is giving me a wonderful gift: taking DCs to visit his family while I spend 5 glorious days in a clean, quiet home. Last year everyone was at camp for a week while I relaxed--it's priceless, and makes me a better mom. Counting down the days (31)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AFwife Claire Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 It's just too stressful to go out with everyone when the whole world is also going out. I told dh I wanted a day with no dishes, so we ate left-overs on paper plates, LOL. Actually, he took me out to eat on a date Friday night. Now THAT was a nice celebration! I love being a mom, but I also really, really enjoy celebrating that by myself or with other moms. I guess I am adult-time deprived, LOL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CookieMonster Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Am I the only mom in the world who's idea of a perfect Mother's Day gift is to have the whole house all to myself? I hate eating out on Mom's Day, fighting the crowds. I don't want flowers and gifts telling me I'm a wonderful mom. My kids and dh tell me that almost everyday...sometimes, after tripping over kids 24/7, I just wish that I could go two hours without hearing, "Hey, Mom?"...Today, dh helped the kids clean up the house, and then took them all away! It's wonderful! What bliss. I'm not sure what to do with myself. Watch a movie? Download HSTrackerPlus? Do some ironing? Take a nap? Hmmm. Am I the only one who's best way to celebrate being a mom is to not be a mom for a little while? You are not alone. I would infinitely prefer this sort of a Mother's Day. I say ditch the cards and the small gifts (nice as they are) and give me a day alone! But, it aintagonnahappen round these parts. *sigh* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aunty Social Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 I also prefer to "uncelebrate". The whole forced appreciation really gets to me! I even dread church because I know the sermon will be all about how great mothers are, with lots of examples of great historical moms. No pressure!:glare: The best thing my hubby and kids can do for me is just go along with whatever plans I have for the day and not complain or ask if we're done yet. Today we went to church, grabbed lunch, and then went shopping for the kids summer clothes. What a relief to have some of that done! Some other mom's days we've done yardwork, or I've gotten to take a nap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brigitte Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Am I the only mom in the world who's idea of a perfect Mother's Day gift is to have the whole house all to myself? I hate eating out on Mom's Day, fighting the crowds. I don't want flowers and gifts telling me I'm a wonderful mom. My kids and dh tell me that almost everyday. We've never made a big deal out of Mother's Day or Father's Day. Dh calls them Hallmark Holidays, and just doesn't buy into the whole thing. He believes moms need to be appreciated everyday, and he and the kids do that very well. But, sometimes, after tripping over kids 24/7, I just wish that I could go two hours without hearing, "Hey, Mom?" Today, dh helped the kids clean up the house, and then took them all away! It's wonderful! What bliss. I'm not sure what to do with myself. Watch a movie? Download HSTrackerPlus? Do some ironing? Take a nap? Hmmm. Anyway, I'm enjoying not celebrating mother's day. Am I the only one who's best way to celebrate being a mom is to not be a mom for a little while? Sounds like a slice of heaven, if you ask me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne in ABQ Posted May 12, 2008 Author Share Posted May 12, 2008 Oh, the sermon thing. This weekend, we had a very different sort of mother's day sermon. We had a guest speaker, a prosecuting attorney! He shared some "horrible mother" stories (in contrast with his own wonderful mother). It was different! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aubrey Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Sounds like a slice of heaven, if you ask me! Oh, my. That *does* sound wonderful. Today has really been a disaster, in so many ways. In the end, dh hesitantly suggested the one plan he'd come up w/, but preceded it w/ an apology for how bad it was: "What if I get your stuff out & you can sew?" Wow. It was the best idea he'd EVER come up w/!! I'm glad to hear I'm not alone. In fact, I think I'll follow y'all's guidelines in the future. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeri Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Last year my dh took all the kids to visit HIS mother, 2 hours away! That was wonderful for me and she enjoyed it too! This year he left at 10 am for a week long business trip. Sigh. jeri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brindee Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 I agree, I'm not into mushy, gushy stuff. My dh and I VERY rarely do cards, and I am not one that likes getting flowers, so he doesn't have to worry about that. We rarely go out to eat thought, so I DO like going out. But we plan strategically. #1-We go after the "after church" crowd, and before the evening crowd. #2-We go to restaurants that aren't as popular. We all love Thai food, so we often go there. That's what we did today, and it worked out beautifully! After the lunch bunch and before the evening traffic (we went at 3:30). Then they all went and did their own thing and I got on the computer! I read awhile and am going to knit for awhile. If I ask for something they jump to get it, which is fine with me! ;) Oh, and my ds14 and dd11 made breakfast for dh and me this morning. They set the table all fancy, put juice in 2 crystal glasses, made 2 heart pancakes, some eggs and some hashbrowns! It was good! Then they cleaned up! Now, as a mom, I REALLY appreciate THAT!!! :D So, I've had a GREAT day!!! :love: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BamaTanya Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Our church hosted a family brunch between services this morning. It was nice, but I did what I usually do -- get the children seated and take one or two kids to the buffet tables . . . over and over . . . until I've served all 5 of them and gotten something for myself. Sigh. Dh usually helps, but this morning was helping an elderly couple (he's blind and she is recovering from a fall). At least none of the children spilled anything this time. Dh asked what I wanted to DO for Mother's Day (i.e., go out to eat) and I said I wanted to go to the cemetery ALONE. So I took some flowers to my mother's grave and thought about how much I miss her and thought about how I'm really going to have to step up to the plate now to make sure everything's taken care of. Like she always did for everyone else. And tonight dd and I watched the episodes of Scrubs and The Office that we missed last week. :) I think I'll ask for the "quiet, alone house" next year! And maybe a Jane Austen movie with a frappuccino! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenschooler Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 We spend so much of our time together as a family that these holidays seem kind of superfluous to me. That's what I was trying to say in the earlier thread (by Jessica) about Mother's Day. We went out to a few things this weekend together, had a nice dinner cooked by dh, and they bought me some plants. That's pretty much what we do every weekend, though. :D Dh likes to cook on Sundays, because it's the only day he really has time. And I'm a plant-addict, so that's a given. The cards were nice, and dd#1 wrote me a poem. That was a real surprise! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 Mine was backwards this year. I didn't hear Happy Mother's Day until I reminded dh to call his mother because it was "Mother's Day"! :001_huh: I had to go to Walmart for groceries and did more mothering things before 10am than I normally do on Sunday. Then, God bless my overworked and overstressed dh, he asked me what was for dinner. I said "Whatever you're fixing, I'm off." So we had a nice spaghetti dinner and the boys did ALL of the dishes. (yeah!) Then it was so cute they gave me cards. They signed the wrong ones. Ds picked out one that played a song, so he wanted that to be the one from him, even though it says "to my wife". Dh gave me one that said to my mother. :lol:I just laughed, it was too cute. So it ended on a good note. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teamturner Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 My sweet dh likes to make me cards on the computer. For my last birthday, he scanned in my kids' hand drawn cards and inserted some pictures and it was adorable. So for Mother's day, he spent a very long time making me this wonderful slide show on the computer set to music. The music was the Forest Gump theme song, which makes me cry anyways, and he included pictures of my babies then and now and all the things I do for them and with them. It was incredible! Oh, I tried watching a Jane Austen movie, but the kids kept coming in wanting to snuggle. LOL! It was a great mother's day all around. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frogpond1 Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 and I feel really bad about it. I ended up with a bladder infection and the antibiotics really did a number on me. It was rainy and we couldn't go outside. Because I spent all Saturday getting to the dr. we had a bunch of cleaning and chores to do. Everyone in my home was grumpy. My fish were killing each other and the 8th one died and our new one had his eye bit off. What a day. I declare today officially not Mother's day. For a real mother's day I'd like to just spend it having fun with my kids. Today wasn't that kind of day from the start. I feel terrible too that it wasn't. My kids think Mother's Day is a day of drudgery doing laundry etc. I think I'll try to make this week much better than today was. :tongue_smilie: This day didn't go bad because of any people in my home either. We all felt terrible. I think we all may be fighting rainy day depression with a bit of headaches etc. thrown in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailV Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 In the end, dh hesitantly suggested the one plan he'd come up w/, but preceded it w/ an apology for how bad it was: "What if I get your stuff out & you can sew?" Wow. It was the best idea he'd EVER come up w/!! Oooh, that's the perfect Mother's Day *or* birthday! Fortunately, dh and dds have figured that out. So, we came home from church and ate soup out of a can (my choice -- I hate eating out). Then they worked on painting dd's room, while I puttered around cleaning the kitchen, then cutting out a pair of capri pants. It was a perfect day, sigh. The kids even cleaned up all the Playmobil in the basement. Dh also gave me a new hose reel for our garden hose. I hate rolling up hoses. And dd gave me a gift certificate good for one clean room of my choice, LOL. My family knows me so well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 books my mother read. It was my first mother's day without my mother, and I emailed someone who is the son of a co-worker of my father with my "doings" of the weekend just because I didn't have her to tell them all to. This very old Basho poem was my mother's thought of death: If they ask of me Tell them: he had things to do In another world And this is the haiku I wrote about her yesterday: the house is empty this is the first spring you are not a gardener Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 I completely understand where you're coming from. I'm surprised that more weekend getaways don't offer special Mother's Day packages for one. I went out on Saturday night with a friend (I quite liked Son of Rambow BTW). We did go for sushi on Sunday, but we always go for sushi on Sundays. We just went a little earlier to avoid the crowd and DH left early with the kids to let them run around outside. Then we hit Powells... I guess my Mother's Day treat was that DH tood kid duty the whole time. :) Mother's Day doesn't do much for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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