This past Sunday, my husband woke up wicked early (5 am maybe, I was, like,
sleeping) and took care of the dogs. It
is usually our dogs making a fuss in the morning and not the baby waking us up.
Patrick fed the dogs, let them out, and
then Orion wanted in on the action. So, Patrick
took care of the baby. I could
occasionally hear the baby crawling down our hardwood floor hallway, smack,
smack, smak. But then Patrick would
redirect the baby. Around 7, I let
Patrick know that my boobs were open for business and to let in my hungry
baby. Orion crawled down the hall and
opened the bedroom door and was so very happy to see me. His face said Happy Mother’s Day!
I nursed up the baby and when he had his fill, we went into
the living room. I left him to play
while I did some computer stuff. All of
this is really boring but the great thing is that I felt like I could do
whatever I wanted and not feel bad about it.
Patrick knew he was on primary baby care today so I could do as I
pleased. Patrick was also on breakfast
duty and I requested Martha Stewart’s Apple Dutch baby. I love it and so did Orion!
The morning was very laid back and we did not have a
schedule for the day ahead. I hung out
in my jammies which really isn’t anything new or unusual. Maybe it was around 11, when I realized what
I really wanted. I made a list of errands
for Patrick to do with the baby. They
left and I had the house to myself!
Well, the dogs were still there but I think they were happy to have the
baby out of the house.
I was so happy to be home alone that I did a little
dance. I turned on Pandora and made a station
for The Killers. Patrick hates this band
so I could listen loudly and not drive him crazy. Then I pulled out the sewing machine and a
fan. These things plug into the wall and
fascinate the baby. It is really hard,
almost impossible, to use these things with the baby crawling around. We lack a baby jail and tend to let him be a
free range baby. I got to sewing on my
brand new Singer 160 which was my Mother’s Day present.
I am new to sewing, so I was just practicing by making
little washcloths. I attempted to do an
applique t shirt but totally messed up.
I also had a bit of an accident with the ironing board and some fusible
interfacing. That reminds me, I need to buy a new ironing board cover. I played and experimented with the sewing
machine. Then things started going a
little wonky and I had to walk away from the machine and it was lunchtime.
I have a thing for iceberg lettuce and mayonnaise. Something magical happens when these are
combined with bread, especially big bad white bread. I was very excited to make a sandwich on an
onion bun with mustard, cheddar cheese, lettuce, and mayo in that order from
top to bottom. It was simple, delicious,
and indulgent. Patrick does not share my
enjoyment of iceberg lettuce. Last time
I asked for lettuce he brought home one of those hippie heads of butter bid
lettuce that still had its roots. My sandwich
was so good, I made another and did not hesitate to use up the last onion bun. It ate it standing in the kitchen looking out
the window watching my dogs run amok in the backyard.
Once again, the details of what I did during those baby free
hours are pretty boring. I stayed in my
jammies. Wrote out some cards, did some
interneting, and attempted to dismantle Orion’s 1st birthday
scrapbook but couldn’t get the posts apart. The exciting thing was that I was
able to do all these things without tripping over my baby. I was going to get a manicure and a pedicure
but I couldn’t even be bothered. That
would meant I would have to get dressed and leave the house. I’ll save that for another day as a mommy
getaway.
I went through a box of old photos that we got when we were
cleaning out my dad’s apartment last year.
There were so many pictures of my mom and even a whole envelope of her
that said “Susan various aspects” in my dad’s handwriting. There was also an envelope that said
“Charlotte’s first haircut” in my mother’s handwriting. I love to see their handwriting as it was
something that you easily take for granted during a person’s life but once they
are gone becomes so precious. I was able
to spend some alone time thinking about my mom and crying without worrying
about anyone seeing my tears.
I was starting to worry about my husband and baby as I had
not heard back from Patrick regarding my last text message. My mind always jumps to horrible conclusions.
Considering my history that can’t be surprising. Also, I think something happens to me when I
go for more than 3 hours without my baby.
I get a little anxious, maybe it is oxytocin withdraw even though I am
no longer nursing Orion every 3 hours. I
called Patrick and he was on the last stop of his chore list and would be home
soon. Most of their time out was spent
with the baby sleeping and Patrick reading the Game of Thrones books which he
is obsessed with. I hope Orion is such a
voracious reader because his daddy has read 4 books in the past month. I have managed to read one book as far this
year because someone is demanding so much of my time.
They got home after 3:30 and I soon realized that I would
have to finally put on some clothes to make our 5:15 dinner reservation. I wanted to take more than the usually 10 minutes
I spend to get ready and may have spent a whole 20 minutes, oh so fancy. I even put on makeup and the even more
unusual foundation. When it comes to my doing my hair I am pretty clueless so I resort to the side ponytail because it is easy and I think it is funny. It's like a ponytail but it is fancy cause it is on the side! I was also very
excited to leave the house without a diaper bag or purse of any kind. My red dress had 2 pockets, one for my
lipstick and one for my phone. I was
good to go.

We had a wonderful dinner at
Liberty Tavern in
Clarendon. They were nice enough to give
us a 4 top even though the reservation was for 2. We needed all that extra room for all the food
we ordered. It was so delicious! There
homemade bread is crazy good and the butter is crunchy and delicious. I love salted butter and I wouldn’t be surprised
if they made the butter in house. They
make a lot of their own cheeses and charcuterie. The first time we ate here a few years ago we
fell in love with the grilled octopus and want to eat it every time we
visit.
We started with the grilled octopus which was served with asparagus,
mushroom, watermelon radish, and pickled ramp vinaigrette. We also shared and ordered of the housemade
capellaci which was stuffed with lamb neck, smoked whipped chevre, chard
and mint with morel mushroom-goat milk froth.
For my entrée I got the veal strip and shortrib with grilled asparagus,
goat milk yogurt and violet mustard gel, potato-white asparagus puree, pea
tendrils. Patrick got the smorgasbord
for two which had lamb rillette, crispy scrapple, lamb sausage and duck
prosciutto and was served with pickled spring vegetables, spiced “mint jelly”,
comb honey, and flatbread. We were very
happy with everything we ate. The
scrapple was the best I have ever eaten and being from Philly I have eaten more
than my fair share of scrapple. Patrick
used to make all his out of town guests try scrapple during their visit.
Everything was so delicious and I love
Liberty Tavern because they
use local and humane meats. You would
think I had no room in my belly but I reserved my second belly for
dessert. I am so glad I did. I had a pistachio brownie served with salted
caramel ice cream, a caramelized marshmallow and drizzled with chocolate and
caramel then sprinkled with pistachios topped with a chocolate shortbread moon
and a shortbread star. I ate every
single bite and every bit of food that was put in front of me. Well, I sadly did not eat the entire bread
basket and wish we had been given the last few slices in a doggie bag.
Orion was a very good boy during dinner. He got to eat some yogurt, some banana, and
some of the yummy housemade bread. He
did get fussy towards the end as we had been there for about an hour and a
half. Our waitress did say that Orion
was in the lead for best baby in the room.
He was totally flirting with her so the competition may have been
rigged. We had such a wonderful dining experience
that it totally made up for the disappointment of my birthday dinner. Orion cried a bit on the way home but then
was asleep.
When we got home, Patrick gifted me with a card, 3 Wild Ophelia’s
chocolate bars, and a box of Orion brand choco-pies which are like moon pies. I would not have gotten these gifts if Orion
had not fallen asleep earlier in the day while Patrick was wearing him in
Nordstrom. There is a World Market next
door and Patrick spent some time walking around trying to keep the baby asleep. This is another reason why I suggest kicking
your husband out on Mother’s Day with the kids as it will enable him to take
care of any last minute shopping.
I may not have had a fancy exciting Mother’s Day but what I did have
was a wonderful day filled with love. I
am sorry that some people do not like Mother’s Day or so-called Hallmark
holidays. I think these days are just
wonderful excuses to take time for each other and express your love. There is no set in stone way to do it and you
can make the day whatever you want. You
can create new traditions, memories, and keepsakes. Personally, I love cards and my husband
always writes sweet notes in the cards he gives me. I save them and love looking back on them and
reading their tender messages.
I also plan to use Mother’s Day as a day to talk with my kids
about my mother once they get older. It
will be a day where I am free to reminisce and cry if I feel the need to
without hiding my tears from my family. The
only way to keep someone’s memory alive is to share stories about them. Mother’s Day is also a great day to talk
about all the other women in your life who have mothered you and influenced the
person you have become. I was lucky to
have a great mother but also her mother was a wonderful and caring woman who
had 9 kids. I also have many aunts who
have been very caring and loving over the years. I am thankful for all the strong women who
have touched my life. I hope they all had
a Happy Mother’s Day and know how much they are loved!