Mother's Day

Jake got the jump on Mother's Day and brought me breakfast in bed Saturday morning. Peanut butter toast and Kool Aid (maybe that is what he has for breakfast). Then on Sunday morning the kids teamed up and made breakfast in bed for Mike and I both. We had scrambled eggs with cheese, toast with a lot of butter, Kool Aid and the pink & white sprinkled animal cookies. Then they watched us eat it... When I did get out of bed, this is what our kitchen looked like.

Jake gave me some wonderful origami and one of them had this great picture inside.

He also made this for me at school.

...um sometimes I make fun of the girls?...

They made these cute questionnaires at school too. I loved the idea of visiting with Jake and taking the time to ask questions that maybe you should know but don't.

It was one piece but I wanted to get a good shot of the questions and design.

Luly made this book at school. 

She insisted that I open it Friday and Saturday, but I wouldn't until Mother's Day. 

I really like it when the kids spell the way it sounds, maybe because it is cute, 

maybe because I can't spell either.

Gracie made this darling card at school. They pressed the flowers themselves.

 I love that cleaning and singing were noted. I might get silly when I clean 

and Gracie is one of the best cleaning partners around.

    

 Gracie made me a little pot that she painted at Activity Days. She figured because I am an Activity Days leader, I wouldn't need it. She kept trying to steal the pencils.

But the real kicker was this little ditty. After the kids gave me their sweet little gifts I asked them to go out of my bedroom so I could get up and get dressed. 

One of them tossed this note onto my bed and I read it out loud:

Then Gretchen did a little shout about how there was no school on Monday and Tuesday.

They left and I asked Mike to read it again and see if I had understood it correctly.

He read it and asked, "So what, they only want the smart kids to come to school?"

I was mad, damn mad. Why was I getting this -little- note on Sunday, why had the kids not said anything before, why was it on white paper and not on a huge brightly colored posterboard so it would not be missed, why did each of my children not bring one home to make sure I didn't miss it.

I called Leslie to see if she had seen this note, I called Heidi to see if she had seen it. Neither of the answered. I was going to take my kids to school. I was going to call the district on Sunday I was going to march into that school on Monday morning and give them a piece of my mind.

Then I thought, hey Gracie's teacher is in our ward. I called him right from my bed.

"Randy Bird, this is not religious, but I wondered why you folks only want the "smart kids" to come to school?"

He asked for some clarification so I read him the note. He was stumped. He asked me to bring the note so he could see it....

Then it hit me! The little turkeys had made it up and Gretchen had been in the same room with them while they created it (interesting that she would cheer like it was for real).

Anyway, even after it was all sorted out I was still worked up. I told my mom and dad about it and my dad asked if it was Mother's Day or April Fools day. Crazy part is, they were not doing it as a joke, they just wanted to see if they could get out of school. Mr. Bird said that they ~were in fact smart~ and to go ahead and send them to school.

As a side note, Saturday night I knelt down and deliberately prayed that I could enjoy Mother's Day. I wanted to enjoy my kids and I wanted them to enjoy me.

After the little school fiasco and about an hour to settle down I remembered my prayer, changed my attitude and enjoyed my day, three cheers for deliberate parenting. I am a lucky mom.