A Mom is....

I love you Mom - I have been blessed with a Mother, who has always been there for me when life has gotten difficult or when I was celebrating the special and ordinary events in my life. I know that I can count on her to listen and, even to parent me in middle age. Our standing joke is that she will tell me that its time for bed when the clock is getting late and we are talking on the phone. I can say " Yes Mom" and grin". This photo was taken of us about 5 years ago. She recently celebrated a birthday and my family went home to visit just before her and my dad's birthday. I wish her a very special Mother's Day. I am looking forward to talking to her some time today to wish her a lovely day. I will try not to make it too close to my bed time :D
On Friday, it was our annual Mother's Day Tea. My school children made flowers for their moms/grandmas to present to them at home. All week we practised songs, made cards and wrapping paper and finished painting our flowers. We sang 5 songs for our Moms.I had the kids do a survey- my kid's moms ranged in age from 11 to 65...five year olds do not have a clear idea how old we are..VBG
We had most of our moms come to join us for the tea so the gym( our current classroom) was pretty full with our students and their families.(My teaching partner and I had about 3/4 of our families represented). As always, our educational assistants helped to make the tea a grand success- they made sure the tea pots and food trays were full. Our special assistants gave the children without any family members present, an opportunity to give tea to someone special. We are very fortunate to have such wonderful caring support for our students. One rose was given to each parent as they left the tea. We sent home a flower with each of the students whose families were not able to come celebrate with us. Friday was a very busy day because we went on a field trip to a local school to hear Sandi and Lee Paley sing with the kids in the morning. We were a group of tired ladies at Friday's end.

I promised you a before and after photo of my new hairdo. This is a photo taken a few days before- I was mighty windblown( which doesn't help) but it was getting pretty raggedy looking. The pets are not very happy looking either LOL

And here is the updated haircut- sleek and shaped and not too floofie looking. I am not sure why I didn't put my specs on- I wear them all the times these days as I can not read much of anything without them.(I do have more than green shirts in my closet) just have been wearing lots of green this spring. Perhaps I am hoping that spring has finally arrived- last week we had a snowstorm and needed to pull out the dreaded shovel. It has melted again and things are really beginning to green up- Hurrah!
Bruce and I visited the Art Gallery this week to attend a lecture about Yousef Karsh. His black and white photographs are so rich with light. He was an Armenian immigrant who moved to Canada when he was 16. He lived a long life( 1908-2002), mostly in the city of Ottawa and took photos of over 15,000 people many of them celebrities. This beautiful book called "Regarding Heroes" was written by David Travis. He was a former curator of photography of the Art Institute of Chicago and was the speaker at the lecture we attended. His book was a Mother's Day gift from my loving spouse. My favorite page in the book has Martin Luther King on the left and Nelson Mandela on the right page.

Yesterday while I was out, I visited a local quilt store to check out there clearance section. They had some lovely fabrics that included a beautiful piece of paisley that I added to the stash. Our son Kevin and his girlfriend, Roseanne, took me out to Mother's Day dinner in the evening. We stopped for dessert at a local ice cream place called Marble Slab to have waffle cones. My choice was raspberry cheesecake ice cream - total decadence.

Later today we are off to the Winspear auditorium to partake in a special event where some classic Chopin will be played and nice food served. It should be a very nice evening. All in all, I am one fortunate lady.

There are a few giveaways going on in blogland:
a honey run quilters giveaway Do you like jelly rolls and charm squares? Do you have a favorite line of fabric? Go leave a comment for her to enter.
Inch Worm Fabrics is having a great giveaway of a Lonestar book by Jan Krentz . She has a great blog and very nice store - do go and have a look around.Mother's day giveaway. Be sure to go to the Mother's day link first in order to enter for the great book. I am sure you will enjoy your visit.

Angela at Fenland Textile Studio gave me a very nice compliment and chose me as one of her beautiful bloggers. There are many wonderful blogs out there so I am very touched, she would choose me. There are so many bloggers that I could pass it on to, that I can not choose a handful. Pick any of the blogs on my blog list and you will find someone special to read. Do stop by Angela's blog -she has been sick with pleurisy and will enjoy having you leave a comment.

My original idea for today's post, was to write about my four great grandmothers. They were amazing ladies who were immigrants at the turn of the 20th century. That is a post for another time.

For some of you, Mother's Day may not be a happy day. You may have lost your mother or your child recently and feel great sadness. May you find yourself buoyed by the warmth of caring loved ones today.

I have been blessed with a loving Mother and Mother in Law. My mother in law now lives in a nursing home where she is well cared for- she has Alzheimer's. I miss her friendship, her love of the arts and her thoughtful ways. She was a nice painter, a fabulous bread maker and a kind and caring friend to me. She raised 5 wonderful children who miss her presence in their lives.

Motherhood, to me, is about the nurturing of loved ones- that may be your biological mother or someone who has provided you with the care and feeding of your physical or emotional spirit. Our family circles are richer for those who give us sustenance and support. Thank you to all who share their loving gifts with others.

Until next time,
Be well,
Warmest regards,
Anna