Celebrate

A Sweet, Sweet Day

45 Comments

Yesterday was Mother’s Day, and the kids know exactly what I like—sweets and flowers. (I like to joke that I don’t have a sweet tooth but instead a whole mouthful of them: Sweet teeth.) Truly, I received an abundance of good things from my family, and I am oh so grateful.

Here’s a sample of what the kids gave me. The chocolates come from a local business called Scrummy’s, which I’ve written about in previous posts. The gift card is from Longfellow’s Greenhouse in the next town over from us.

Plus there were actual flowers,

and gelato, tea, and Ghiradelli chocolate. These last three, along with the above flowers, were ordered via Instacart from a local grocery store. Instacart is an excellent service that I can highly recommend for folks in the U.S. who are of an age where it’s recommended that they don’t go to the grocery store.

A brief explanation about how I handle treats: One day a week, I have a treat day, where I can indulge in as much as I want. That day, usually Sunday, is a day for candy, for popcorn with butter, for whatever else strikes my fancy. I have a stash, and I am good at not raiding it until treat day. (The candy I got for Mother’s Day sure livens up my stash.) The other six days of the week I stick to the straight and narrow and eat food that is good for me—mostly plants and not too much. Might sound a little weird, but this regimen works for me, and I have even lost weight during this time of the coronavirus.

But the biggest treat of all came late Sunday morning, when Clif and I Zoomed with the kids—Dee, Mike, and Shannon—for over two hours. How lovely to see their faces and to discuss all the things we enjoy talking about—movies, books, politics. Conversations with the three of them is always a delight.

In the course of our conversation, Mike recommended Crooklyn, a 1994 semi-autobiographical movie by Spike Lee. Intrigued by Mike’s description of the film, Clif and I decided to watch Crooklyn last night.

Crooklyn, set in Brooklyn in the 1970s, has been described as messy, and it is, just like real life. However, Crooklyn is also warm and moving, cruel at times, and brave in its depiction of family life. A true indie film, its pacing is what might be called deliberate and requires patience. But by the middle of Crooklyn, I was hooked on this movie about the Carmichael family and their struggles. (Clif was less enthusiastic about it.)

Then there’s the fantastic soundtrack, chockablock full of music from the 1970s, when I was teenager. I knew every single song featured in the movie, and I could even sing along with most of them. Truly, a blast from the past, even though I grew up in rural Maine, and the move is set in New York City. (Spike Lee and I were born the same year.)

Anyway, all in all, a wonderful Mother’s Day. Many, many thanks to Dee, Mike, and Shannon.

And to Clif, who made pancakes for breakfast.

45 thoughts on “A Sweet, Sweet Day”

  1. Happy Mother’s Day again!!

    So thankful for technology that makes it not quite as hard to stay separated during these times. It obviously doesn’t compare to being there in person but it’s so much better then just talking on the phone – at least to me it is! 🙂

  2. Congrats on a good Mothers Day! We had the pleasure of two FaceTime sessions with our two sons and their wives/partners, and then a fine meal ordered by them and delivered to our door! Not too shabby in the circumstances!

  3. Oh, the difference between having girls vs. boys. 😉 No flowers or yummy treats here, but at least each of them called to wish me a happy Mother’s Day. Can’t complain about that. 🙂
    Enjoy your treats!

  4. Lovely!
    Btw: I am have problems ‘liking’ and commenting on a few sites. I can’t ‘like’ your posts and I have to sign in each time to comment. This might be a temporary blip – hope so.

  8. The flowers and sweets sound like lovely gifts! My own weakness is for dried dates. 🙂

    Had I known you years ago when I won a 5 lb Hershey bar in a raffle, I would have sent it to you. 🙂

  9. I never heard of Crooklyn. I grew up in the 70s too, graduated high school in 1974. I guess I should go find it and watch it one of these evenings. I’m having trouble having enough attention span to read, don’t know if I can watch a movie but I can try.

    So glad you had such a lovely Mother’s Day given where we all are at the moment. Hoping you can see your kids in person soon!

    1. I graduated in 1975, so we are very close in age. Do want to warn you…Crooklyn is not an easy film to watch. But worthwhile. At least I thought so.

  10. I’m glad you had such a lovely Mother’s Day and once visit with your kids. Let me tell you, the turtles would be hard to resist for me. Yum.

  14. Glad you had a good day. Your regime for eating sounds interesting and obviously works for you. Enjoy your chocolates.

  15. A good day – the film more so for you than Clif. We are still looking at the Easter eggs bought before lockdown. So far we have only eaten one.

  16. You, Mainers, know how to celebrate Mother’s Day and to enjoy really good treats. 🙂 Glad to hear you had such a nice weekend. I’ve heard of Instacart but never used it. I’m off to check it out. Have a good week.

  17. I am all in favour of a sweet treat now and then. I do crave chocolate much more in winter, imagine what I would be like in your climate……….I’d have to carry chocolate around with me!

  20. That sounds like a perfect day and I like your way of disciplining yourself with the treats. A soundtrack makes a big difference to a film for me.

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