My "Mother's Day"

Today is my Mother's Day. Which I can officially acknowledge at 10:15 p.m. to mark 28 years since I brought our brown-eyed bandit into the world. Yes, 28 years! Next year will be terribly awkward since we'll both be 29 and I already have twin. Hmmm.

When my oldest sister (whom my "real twin" and I call our "upstairs mother") sent me the above image today, I had to cry. 

It's one thing to love your child and celebrate his existence. But it's a whole new level of pride when you can look at your adult child and realize you did good raising him. I mean we have to take SOME credit, right?

Despite his serious "Thinker" pose above prepping to be the narrator in a grade school play, he has the best sense of humor. A perfect combo of (yes both of us, LOL) his parents' quick wit, clever turns of phrase, and of course, sarcasm.

I love his courage to get a passport and study abroad. Not knowing anyone! But finding a career focus after graduation to work for a company that provides this same opportunity for others like him.

I beam with pride when I hear how much he does for others. His girlfriend's family cannot say enough good things about what he does for them – from physical labor to helping care for people and animals. I'm most proud of you for that, Carter. You have such a big, generous heart. 

You have such compassion. Even at 8 years old you'd be corralling wayward shopping carts in the Walmart parking lot with a "Mom, why can't people just put them where they belong? It takes like 5 seconds!" 😁

And I'll cry typing this... throughout your childhood (even in the sometimes surly teen years), every time I called my mom, you were willing to talk first with a "Hi, Grandma. How's it going?" She just thought you were so kind, smart, funny, and exceptional.

I'm biased. But I agree. 

Thanks for making my "Mother's Day" my best day! 💜

Full Friday Vibes

 

I actually hoped to use that afternoon off I planned to take on rainy Wednesday this afternoon. But we got the whole rainy gloomy deal again today. So I worked.

Hubby managed lawn maintenance duties between rain clouds. So props to him!

Then, when I was done with work, I managed some 20-plus minutes in the sun with Mr. Deck Chair while I was waiting to hear from my sister RoAnn. She and her hubby were traveling from Minnesota to Green Bay and back today for some special vintage truck parts. I said if it was timed correctly and they were within an hour from me, we could meet up.

So we met up at my work stomping grounds PJ's – SentryWorld (flower picture at top) for dinner. We sat out on the patio until rain forced us inside shortly after we dove in their award-winning cheese curds! Great meal and great catching up. I'm pretty sure we haven't seen each other since Christmas. This year is just going by too fast!

Got home and hubby and I headed out to R & R Patio Bar to see our friend (and his high school classmate) Todd perform with his new band.

If you get the chance, check out Rising Star at a venue near you. New band but all the members come with a wealth of experience and they sound great! And we got to see a few AHS alum friends, too. But again, Mother Nature had other ideas and we bailed when we started to get rained on at some point in the second set. We will see/hear you again, Todd!

Turned out to be a full day for sketchy weather. Hope you all enjoy the weekend!

Bleeding Hearts

 

It's appropriate that my bleeding hearts plants bloom in May – the month my dad died 11 years ago. But this year it applies to even more stresses on our hearts as we continue to pray for my sister and mom. 

As I said some time ago (6 weeks seems like a year!), it's been two steps forward and one step back for these two. After a promising weekend, they both had setbacks to start their week. So prayer warriors, please pray for those doctors to have the knowledge and skill set to make them better. And of course, pray that they'll have strength. It's hard to have that after so many uphill battles!

Not that we need any more bleeding hearts in our lives, but we also found out today that two of our friends have cancer. I'll never understand why God allows this to happen, but I will still pray to Him to give them strength to fight this battle! 

As much as I dislike these stressors on our hearts, I know that the power of prayer works. (I mean, my sister is alive, after all.) And that I'm grateful for my somewhat sketchy version of "health" today. Never take that for granted!

Thanks for reading and praying and being a part of my bleeding heart! 

Happy May Day

Happy May Day! The last few evenings have been a whirlwind of spring sports photos (soccer and baseball) and editing them. So no time to blog. 

You didn't miss anything.

But I'm back in time for one of my favorite days. 

Of course, when I was a child, I loved May Day. We made "baskets" from business-sized envelopes – cutting the corners to make a handle, drawing and coloring flowers, glueing ribbon, and filling with a few treats. We'd deliver to a lot of neighbors and elderly, who really appreciated it. And did some hang, knock, and dash baskets where we HOPED the neighbor boys would come out and chase us. And I guess, kiss us? This picture was from 4th grade, so we definitely weren't focused on that! (Er, no?) 

But I was dismayed that my younger coworkers knew nothing of this tradition. Gotta bring it back, folks!

Fast forward to adulthood and my favorite reason to celebrate this holiday!

One of my favorite people was born today! 💜 And I'll forever think of him as my "baby boy" even though he's 26 "I have to get my own health insurance" years old!

My little sharp-dressed brown-eyed bandit when he was narrator for the school play.

And cleaning up pretty good for brother Casey's wedding last fall. Of course, I'm a biased mom and think he looks cute (or handsome, I should say) in every picture. 

Since he's down in the Driftless Region (southwest Wisconsin) this week visiting his GF, I'm celebrating long distance. I will make a suitable cake or trifle upon his return, of course! 

And I wish I would've had time the past few nights to make May Baskets. Maybe I'll just start a new tradition and make June baskets?! I mean, at some point in 2024, I'll have plenty of free time, right?

For now, I'll just enjoy some of the blossoms about town – and my baby boy! 

Happy Labor Day

All this time I thought May 1st was all about flowers, baskets (and usually better than 40-degree temperatures) for May Day. And here it's Labour Day. Well for me... Labor Day. 

Yup, 25 years ago today I was in labor for 13 hours and even though things were slow-going, I told the doctor, "I want a May Day baby." Not that I cared about the date so much as wanting relief!

But it's an easy date to remember. I just can't believe this little T-ball playing boy is a 25-year-old man now!

Mommy and Daddy agree this is one of our favorite pictures of all time. He wore out this Nike cap and the one after that!

And still looks so darn cute wearing his hat backward! Yes, I am a bit biased.

Jim and I tried video calling him with a "Happy Birthday" at noon, figuring he was on his lunch break, but he didn't answer. Assuming the positive, I figured he was on a work call. But then he called us back a few minutes later. 

He had just gotten up.

He took the day off to recover from the weekend and relax.

Oh boy! That's our boy! Just smile and giggle. And realize we probably would've done the same thing when we were turning 25. Or just about any age in our 20s! 

He's in Wisconsin for a wedding this weekend so we're hoping he'll come up and see us tomorrow. The house smells like fresh-out-of-the-oven Hornet's Cake (his request) and we might just have to give him a 24-hour time limit before we cut that first piece.

OK. Maybe 25 hours. One for each amazing and blessed year he's filled our hearts.

Happy birthday, Carter Joe! You were worth every second of labor! 

Playing in the Dirt

One picture tells the story of softball playoffs tonight. It was hot, dry, windy, dusty – and Assumption was making the plays.

Our Lady Royals avenged last year's playoff loss to Almond-Bancroft with a 4-1 victory today. Now, our recipe of hot hits, solid defense, and aggressive base running means the ladies in blue are one game away from state. They'll play Blair-Taylor in the sectional final on Thursday.

It was a fun – if not a bit nerve-wracking – game to watch. But we needed it.

Hubby and I had gone to the funeral home first for a visitation for the father of some of our friends. Louie was a Royals fan while his kids were going through Assumption back in the day. So it felt good to go from hugging them over to the field and seeing a victory.

And teamwork.

I gotta say I love the coaches' shirts with the "We before Me" motto on them. That could apply to every team in every sport. Oh and work teams. And church congregations. And even families.

That's how you attain success. Or in today's case, advance forward in the playoff bracket. 

Good luck on Thursday, ladies! Keep having fun!

Bloomin' Good

I can't believe that it's taken all of two decades, but this is the first time ever that these two lilac bushes in our front yard have bloomed! Ever!

Even though they were just little shrubs, we still took care over the years and years to mow around them, not over them. Though more than a time or two I thought we should just get rid of them. They're defective!

Good thing we're loaded with patience! 

(That's sarcasm.) But really, what a treat to finally see them and, more importantly, smell them. We're big lilac fans here. Hopefully I can bring a few flowers in so the house smells nice, but I'm scared I'll kill the plants! 

After all that hard work and waiting, maybe I should just steal from the neighbors like the "old" days. 

Be careful out there! 

Don't forget to stop and smell the lilacs.

Tough Loss Saturday

We had a hot and dusty day today as we cheered on Assumption in softball, then our nephew Colin racing.

The Royal Rumble featured a 10 a.m. game between the #1 ranked D5 team in Wisconsin – Oakfield – and our #2 ranked Lady Royals. We knew it would be good – and close – and it was. Every time Oakfield would get a run, we'd match it the next at bat. But we just couldn't take the lead. In the end, we were down one and couldn't tie it, losing our first game of the season 6-5. 

I hope the girls were proud of how they did. It was the toughest team they've faced this year and this can only make them stronger heading into playoffs soon! 

As soon as that game got done, we headed east to Kaukauna to watch Colin race. This was the same race where he crashed his car last year and wasn't able to race again in 2021. So this was his first race in a year and the crew were just hoping to work out all the kinks, etc.

It was a hot day sitting in the direct sun. We both got a bit toasted on the left side only, of course. Didn't help that there were so many cautions slowing down the action today, including a half dozen in the 66-lap feature. Since Colin was running toward the back, these helped a bit as several cars were eliminated. 

In the end, Colin finished just out of the top 10 – 12th, I believe. Hoping to see a few more races this year. I didn't get a chance to get through pictures yet so hopefully I can share some of those tomorrow.

Our drive home was kind of funky. We had sunset on the left and blue skies on the right divided by a big ol' mess of rain clouds. We did get sprinkled on a bit but not enough to wash all that dust off the car! 

Got home and it was a hot pizza and cold shower kind of Saturday night! Heat wave is done, though, so maybe we can open the windows. All the fresh air and I'll be out in not time.

Hope you're having a good weekend!

May Day Wishes

As a child, May Day was all about making, filling, and hanging May baskets. But for the past 24 years, it's been about one thing. Our baby boy.

Yup, Carter is 24 today! And I am feeling major Mom Guilt about not being able to make it a special day. #stupidcovid So I had Jim pick up a "cake" on the way home from church...

For the record, the birthday boy does love Glazers from Kwik Trip, so he was happy at least.

And I'm pretty sure his wish was for a Celtics win today. But the Bucks took them in game one of this playoff series. So the wish isn't unfulfilled just yet.

Since we couldn't do much with him to celebrate, he and his girlfriend met up with his college roommate whose birthday was yesterday. I'm pretty sure they've celebrate at least 4 or 5 of their last birthdays together. Gotta keep the streak alive! They met up for a late lunch over in Oshkosh.

I laid low on my recliner – masked up as I have been for days – and Jim and I knocked out some more final Ozark episodes. Thanks to my house arrest, we only have 2 episodes left. Then it's done forever.

And really, that's about all I accomplished this weekend. Forcing myself to rest is harder than it sounds. But I did pretty good. Unfortunately, the deep coughing fits still visit during the night so I don't know if I'm tired from lack of sleep or tired as a symptom of the virus. Either way, I think the worst is over – all the miserable stuff I felt last week – and I'm hoping I'm on the road to recovery.

Haven't lost my sense of smell or taste yet so hopefully the birthday "cake" lasts a few days, too.

Thanks for all the well wishes for me and all the birthday wishes for Carter. It's going to be a good trip around the sun!

Hail of an Ending

Well the month of May went out with quite a bang after all. That thunder we heard last night developed into one heckuva storm. A loud one. Very loud. 

Loud because pea-size hail was pounding our deck and every other outdoor surface.

It accumulated quickly like there was a sky-sized sno-cone machine hanging overhead. Yikes. Those power hanging flower baskets that had only been in my possession for some 5 or 6 hours. Darn you, Mother Nature.

Then today, when it was sunny and 70, the hail was still hanging around. At least until lunchtime.

Kind of looks like I have my own little glacier. Though I hope in 2 weeks we see ones a lot bigger than this. Global warming? Well, take a look at the 3 pictures above and let me know how that's working out.

Catch-Up Day

Happy Memorial Day. Well I guess it's weird to say "happy" when it's a holiday honoring those who lost their lives fighting for our freedoms. Maybe just say have good Memorial Day. And you determine what's good about it.

For me it was good to have day with nothing on the calendar. I could catch up on a few things. Got a walk in this morning. Felt much more like spring-almost-summer-time walking around the lake this morning than yesterday! Could it be on the last day of May, we're getting somewhere with Mother Nature?

I type that as I hear thunder outside – which thankfully held off until baseball practice was over and our supper of grilled kabobs was done. 

My other achievement today, besides getting to watch my Twins win on TV and baking banana bread for the in-laws, was finally getting my hanging flower baskets. Most greenhouses have a depleted supply this late in the game, but I had some colorful luck at The Home Depot. And yes, there's plenty of purple to go around!

Now I'm trusting Mother Nature to cooperate!

Hope you had a good holiday weekend.

Age is Just a Number

You know what golf strokes and birthdays have in common, right? You'll be happier if you don't count them.

As it happens, my golf score is right around my age. Which you don't need to know. Just know I'm typically between 50-55. And of course, 50 is OLD – if you believe everything you've been hearing on golf media outlets the last few days.

I'm glad 50-years-young Phil Mickelson came through and showed them all at the PGA Championship that age is just a number. And 50 is not a big one. Or an old one. Show Lefty some respect!

I couldn't help but snap some pictures on the last hole when the crowd when wild and followed Phil down the fairway. What pandemic? Apparently social distancing was so last season. I felt nervous for both Phil and Brooks Koepka, who had to make their way through the crowd to get to the green. 

Activate claustrophobia and anxiety now!

It was a crazy sight! But an exciting major to watch (most of them are) – especially on a rainy afternoon.

I did get my walk in before the rain and golf started. I walked over the cemetery to visit my girl Miss Emily. That's a 4-mile round trip so it's good for my health and my soul.

I was encouraged to see that someone had visited and left a rose. I assured Em that flowers may fade, but our love for her never will. She's my reminder to count my blessings while they're here – and be grateful to be here.

Probably shouldn't have said age is just a number. Because it's heartbreaking when it's a low number that will never get bigger. Emily should be completing her junior year of college right now. And she never got to start.

I talked a few weeks ago about May being Mental Health Awareness Month. I urge you to do what keeps your sanity intact, what keeps you calm and relaxed – whether that's sitting in a recliner watching golf for 4 hours or taking a walk or visiting friends or family. 

If that doesn't work, ask for help. 

See that crowd of supporters around a golfer they don't even personally know? Well we have support networks, too, that are larger than we realize. They just need to know you need them. It's tough carrying around regrets that you weren't there for someone, but worse regretting that you needed help and didn't ask.

Let's be human for each other. nami.org

May Day, May Day

It's true. April showers do bring May flowers... tree blossoms at least.

And they bring warm May temperatures... yes, it does say 84 degrees on my phone! 

And May Day also means that handsome man above is 23 years old! Yup, time flies when you're leaping from childhood to adulthood! He's still in Platteville so I'm sure enjoying some birthday time with friends.

We were busy anyway. 

Well yesterday was crazy with softball and baseball both playing at the same time and winning 15-0 in both games. Since softball got done early, I was able to shoot pictures of baseball, too. Then, since hubby and his fellow coaches were in a great mood – first win streak since 2018 – we went out to eat afterward. By the time I got home and uploaded softball pictures, it was too late to do baseball and too late to blog.

This morning I got baseball uploaded right away and then walked around the lake and then went garage-sale-ing in search of some mindless books to read by the pool next weekend in Arizona. Didn't have any luck so stopped at Goodwill and picked up a few. 

Since hubby was golfing, I managed to bond with Mr. Deck Chair for a bit. It felt like summer. And it was awesome!

Tonight we had dinner in Stevens Point. We met up with two of his former co-workers (from long ago in Iola) and their wives. Pretty much sat around talking a few hours and it was kind of like old times. Only now we didn't have little kids with us and 4 of the 5 "kids" between the 3 couples are college graduates. Time flies.

Tomorrow it's supposed to get up to 77 here. But there's an 87% chance of rain. So I don't know if I can squeeze in another date with Mr. Deck Chair. Of course, since it was so nice out today I ignored Mr. Broom and Mr. Vacuum. It might be your day tomorrow, guys. 

We'll see if May showers bring motivation.

Jack Frost 101

When I hear of temperature records set in May, I think of the first hot day where we spend 12 hours outside and look like a lobster the next day. But in reality, if it's the cluster known as 2020, it means we could set record lows tonight.

Yes, this stinks. And yes, of course I'll be turning on my electric mattress pad. Per usual.

And this isn't any freeze warning. It's a "hard freeze" warning. A "killing freeze" warning. As in, if you have plants outdoors (I do), be sure to bring them indoors or cover them. Otherwise, they're all gonna die!

How scary. I didn't realize there was so many freeze levels. So I had to turn to my trusty resource – The Old Farmer's Almanac. Here's what you nonfarmer types (like me) need to know:

• A freeze can happen when the surface air temperature falls to 32 degrees or below; frost may or may not form. 
• A light freeze (between 32 and 29 degrees) can kill tender plants. 
• A moderate freeze (between 28 and 25 degrees), sometimes called a hard freeze, can cause wide destruction to most plants. 
• A severe freeze (24 degrees and below), sometimes called a killing freeze, causes heavy damage to most plants. Many plants can survive a brief frost, but very few can survive a severe freeze.

If you want another visual... A severe freeze is like opening up the ice cream container and your spoon bends when you try to scoop it out. It's so cold, you can't even eat it until you either nuke it a bit (22-28 seconds) or set it out to "warm up" for 15 minutes.

That's how us nonfarmer types relate.

Stay warm, my friends!

April Showers Bring May Flower Moon

Apparently, I haven't been paying much attention until recent years when I've had a decent camera. But did you know there's a special name for the full moon each month? Well, OK.  I didn't know that.

The full moon of May is known as Flower Moon to signify the flowers that bloom during this month. And this year, it's actually the final supermoon of 2020. Evidently, this “super flower moon” will peak in the sky tomorrow morning at 5:45 a.m. central, according to NASA.

See my photo? Considering it is this full and bright over my house right now, I'm not setting any alarm!

Also, I don't know if it's a coincidence or not, but this super flower business is also messing with my flowers. The one year I did not procrastinate and got my hanging flower baskets already and this is our forecast the next few days...

Yup, you read that right. Not only freezing or below freezing until next Tuesday at least, but we have a chance for snow and, forecasters say, potential record lows for Mother's Day weekend.

Seriously, Mother Nature. You gotta stand up to Ol' Man Winter. Don't let him back in your life, woman!

While they sort that out, we'll just try to save our flowers and the bees – who apparently are in danger of being decapitated by Murder Hornets. Don't even say you wonder what's next. Because we've gotten some scary answers, haven't we?

Wash your hands. Cover your cough. Bring in your flowers. And be safe out there!

May Day, May Day

Since March and April seemed about 5 years long EACH, we can only hope May gets credit for being the good month! It always starts off great for this family anyway.

While most people think of April showers and May flowers or May Day baskets or dancing around the May Pole, we think of this little brown-eyed bandit!

Yup, our May Day surprise 22 years ago! Wow. Somebody is getting old! I realize 22 is not really the cute and cuddly age, but I'll take hugs and cuddles from Mr. Dimples any time. Any age!

We knew we weren't going to see him on his birthday or birthday weekend, but Carter's girlfriend took care of his celebration. She had a little surprise party last night for Carter and his roommate Jack, whose birthday was yesterday. (What are the odds, right?) Notice she found a cute toddler picture of each of them AND made them each wear a button that says, "Birthday Girl." She did pretty good. Ha!

I celebrated his birthday by finally making my way to King Cone! I took the long way. Stopped at Urbans Greenhouse in Rudolph to get hanging baskets of flowers. Then cut over on Hwy. 66 to Point to stop at Dunham's for a sale item they didn't have. But I did get to take part in a strange interaction there...

Walking into the store and an older guy exiting says: "Whoever said Plover doesn't have anything beautiful was lying."
Me: "Pardon?"
Him: "You take my breath away!"
Me: "Uhm, thanks!"

As I walk away with a grin on my face... behind my stinkin' face mask! Wait. What the heck, dude? What just happened?

Maybe I have small-but-pretty eyes. Or maybe I should just check my ego at the door.

Either way, King Cone solves everything! And is the perfect way to celebrate our baby's special day and this hopefully merry, merry month of May.

I Call Same Seats

There's a calendar in my office that has our quarantine experience by the numbers. Today was day 38 of staying safer at home. And today we learned it's a good thing this is a 3-month wall calendar so I can see the numbers add up through most of May.

Instead of lifting the lockdown restrictions when his order expires next Friday, April 24, our governor extended the order until May 26 so it applies through the Memorial Day weekend. I'm not going to add up what number will be on the calendar that day. It's too depressing.

Depressing, yes. For sure K-12 schools closed for rest of school year. RIP spring sports. RIP the patience of these parents-turned-homeschool teachers. Uff da. And who knows about delayed proms or graduation ceremonies.

This is also is depressing, yes, for businesses struggling to stay afloat and their employees, too – who may or may not have any other source of income for their household.

And definitely depressing, yes, for those of us – basically everyone – missing up close and personal contact with their family and friends.

Depressing, yes. We're tired of the same 4 walls and limited outlets for escape.

But it would be more depressing if they let the inmates out of the asylum too early and there was a statewide free-for-all of hugging and partying and sharing germs – and more people died. Maybe even someone we know.

I didn't realize it would be such a controversial issue. I mean I'd just rather be safe than sorry. If we have to sacrifice now, it will be worth it to have freedom and fun return at some point this summer, hopefully. But if we escape before there's any sense of how we can control the spread, then we're just going to be back in our homes and starting this all over with day one.

I don't know about you, but I don't want to have to write numbers on the calendar every day of 2020. The 3-month view is sufficient for me. And I already called "same seats" in the living room so I got dibs on my recliner for a lot of free evenings and weekends.

Me, you, the Hallmark channel and Netflix will get through this together.

And golf courses MAY open under certain restrictions. Marriage saver right there. Good luck to us all!

Rain Dates

You know who really needs rain? Canada. If they had rain like we did today, maybe it would help douse a few wildfires.

But instead, we got it steadily here in central Wisconsin, where it's been dry, but not AS dry as way Up North, eh.

So that meant baseball and softball games were called off and rescheduled. Of course now, towards the end of the season, we have to reschedule conference matchups which, in turn, bump  nonconference games off the schedule (even if they were a rain date from earlier in the season).

Yep, spring sports and Mother Nature do not always mix.

On the other hand, the rain forced me inside to work, then come home and work on a few design projects. And simultaneously catch up on some Orange is the New Black. (I have to multi-task, you know!) I watched the first half of season 3 last summer then waited until now to watch the second half so it is fresh in my mind when season 4 is released in June.

We have become a society of binge watching, haven't we? God bless (or curse) Netflix.

Some people – like maybe my father-in-law or my brother-in-law – watch baseball every day because they are retired and they can. But binge watching is trying to catch a whole season of a show – or maybe 5 seasons – in as short a time span as possible so you are on pace with everyone else who has been watching it all along.

If we have another rainy night, I will probably finish my season 3 of OITNB. Then I'll have to impose my own "brain delay" so I can get more important things done around here before season 4 – and before jumping into a few other series I wouldn't mind viewing.

It goes without saying that none of these shows are as exciting as watching those handsome Assumption coaches and our Royals at bat!

Mamma Me, Awww

I love Mother's Day because pink is the color of the day – even if you have boys!

Love the sentiment behind this. It hasn't been a perfect journey the last 18 years but I wouldn't trade a minute of it because, well, I'm a MOM!

Since Carter's 18th birthday and Mother's Day only fell a week apart, I did not torture him with another mother-son photo. In fact, now that he's an adult, I left if completely up to him to note the occasion. There's still 3 hours to midnight.

OK, he did wish me well before going to play disc golf and then have his gal pal over. So I was thought of in there. Not ready for this new reality. Made sure I called my own mom even if I was 7th child serving as last caller of the day!

It was a great day, though.

Hubby made me Eggs Benedict for breakfast. I get that once a year on Mother's Day so that is a treat! Didn't quite make it to church because I had a design project to finish before tomorrow's band concert. When I was done with that, I ran to Wal-Mart to get a frame and realized it was gorgeous out.

Came home and took a 3-mile walk with the mother across the street. Then decided to get more fun in the sun by cutting away shrubs and branches and vines that have been growing and growing and blocking the stairway from the side yard down to the backyard. If someone were to take a picture, they would see a mother getting scratched up and sweating while a child may or may not have been laying in the sun nearby. Some irony there but I didn't ask for help. (I wanted it done my way, anyway.)

Went over to Jim's parents at 4 p.m. to eat pizza for supper and enjoy carrot cake for dessert. I was told Weight Watcher points are all zero on Mother's Day. Hope I had good intel on that. Either way, I was going to enjoy myself and I did!

Ironically, my mom said she also made a carrot cake this weekend. So no matter which mom I visited, I could have had my favorite cake. Great minds think alike!

Feel blessed to have them both (the moms, not the cakes) in my life. And blessed beyond measure to be a mom, stepmom and surrogate "I love your kids like my own" mom.

Hope your day was equally blessed!

On the What Side?

Not sure when it started, but somewhere along the line Star Wars fans realized that May the 4th sounds like "May the Force," as in the "May the Force be with you" quote from the movie. So May 4 unofficially became Star Wars Day.

Here's my artistic nod to the holiday on my whiteboard at work...

You never know what's going to happen when Star Wars geeks get a hold of dry-erase markers! For the record, they are awesome because it took several tries to get that Darth Vader helmet not looking like a fancy 10-gallon hat for the Kentucky Derby!

For giggles, my co-worker Jeff and I challenge each other's creativity (mostly in words, not pictures) every day at work. Brings a little levity to the office. Or, as I like to call it, brings the Light Side to the office.

Beware the Dark Side.

Who knows what will happen tomorrow when it's Revenge of the 5th day?!

Told you I was a geek. But that's what you love about me, right?