Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Happy Birthday


We've all been there, just as I was, slowly strolling up and down the aisles of Target, carefully reading each and every greeting card that doesn't say "mother" on it, because really, I don't call her that. She is Mom, simple as that. Do I go for the overly sentimental 5 paragraph book of a card? No, probably not. It isn't her style, or mine either for that matter, if I wanted to write her 5 paragraphs, I'd do it myself. And so I wander on, picking up this one and that, seeing if it "fits" just right. It has to fit our relationship. It has to be meaningful without a lot of frills, kind of like me. I hold these greeting cards to a very high standard because today is the day that I want to show my Mom just how special she is to me. I want to thank her for always being there for me, and she and I know exactly what that means. We know how far she's gone for me, and how much of herself she's given me every day since before I was born. In as few words as possible, I simply want to tell her I love her, and thank you for being you, the best Mom in the world.

I finally find one suitable, it is beautiful, couldn't be prettier than if I'd made it myself which, I could but my Mom knows how busy this time of year is. She'd rather I'd spend my time dreaming up the order of KFC we traditionally bring to the beach for our yearly picnic in her honor. Yes, we are so fancy. Every year, on my Mom's birthday, we pack up all of the essentials and head to KFC for fried chicken, beans, biscuits, mashed potatoes and coleslaw. We always order enough chicken to ensure that everyone get a taste on the way to the beach because it is sheer torture to smell KFC the 20 minutes it takes to get to our favorite beach. We nestle ourselves in our seats and munch the finger-lickin'-goodness all the way there.

The rest of the day is spent beach combing, sunning, swimming, sand castle making, log-hopping and if you are my Dad, napping in the shade listening to the baseball game on a portable radio.

To my Mom, these are the only gifts she requires, this one special day to spend with her family in a beautiful spot. A spot full of the memories of times past, when I was a little girl and my grandparents would join us at this very beach, sometimes bringing KFC.

Happy Birthday Mom.

I love you.

8 comments:

Kelly Wolfe said...

That is so sweet and so true about trying to find the right card. I always think they are waaaay to sentimental OR way too mean/funny.

Happy Birthday to your mom, she is so pretty just like you.

And any mom who wants KFC on the beach for her birthday is okay by me!

Lisa

LindaJ said...

Not only is she a good mom, she is a good "grammie" to not only her grandkids, but to my kids as well. They only know her as "grammie" Kids are the best judge of character, they know who the good ones are.

Happy Birthday "Grammie"

XOXOX,
Braydon, Lila

Anonymous said...

oh, my.

I should know better than to read your blog before I tackle the computer work & emails I need to do. Now I can't concentrate from thinking about 1) what a great daughter you are and 2) how much our family means to me.

thank you

Tori said...

Your mom is a gem...
Happy birthday to her....
And many more....

Nut's mom said...

times and posts like these make me wish I had a mom. you are very lucky. :)

Anonymous said...

As your Mom's only sister, I am totally touched by what you say about her. Wish I had had a daughter--like you.

Aunt Joan

Cristina said...

That was so touching. I think making memories by going back to the same vacation spot every year is wonderful. And I totally get the KFC thing. We used to do picnics with KFC when I was a kid. It brings back good memories for me too.

Happy birthday to your mom.

P.S. Your aunt's comment was sweet.

Sandra said...

Happy Birthday to your mom!

That post was lovely.

I spend an inordinate amount of time selecting just the right card for most every occasion. So I had to smile about your card hunt. Glad you found the perfect one for the perfect day with your mom.