Mother's Day 2009

It's amazing how many emotions can fit into a single day.

First of all, I woke up this morning to Paul and Bradley bringing me coffee and poffertjes (Dutch pancakes) in bed, which is just about the best start to the day I can think of!

Then I was spoilt with flowers, presents, and - best of all - an endless supply of cuddles and kisses.

The highlight was a beautiful little photo book that Paul made by gluing paper onto wood blocks, and stringing them together with ribbon. Then he mounted 10 photos onto the boards - one from every couple of months since Bradley was born.  The result was absolutely spectacular, and is something that I will treasure forever.

I also got a subscription to the wonderful Ottobre sewing magazine, which I'm delighted about... the patterns in these mags are just gorgeous, and I'm going to have so much fun picking out some new creations.

So that was my day as a Mum.

But of course it was also a day for Paul and I to think about our own Mums, who are no longer with us, and are missed so much - particularly knowing that Bradley will never get to meet his beautiful Nana and Oma.

It would be so easy to let the day be overtaken with grief, and so to counter this, we have decided to maintain a tradition where we plant something in the garden to remember them by (they both loved their gardens so much).  This also gives Bradley a chance to get involved.

So part of the day was spent going to the nursery, where Paul picked a beautiful white waterlily for the fishpond, in memory of his Mum (Bradley's Oma).  

And I chose a native Swan River Pea to honour my dear Mum (Bradley's Nana).

It won't bring them back, and we'll still miss them terribly. But this simple little ritual will help to keep them alive in all our hearts, and makes the day that little bit easier.

Happy Mother's Day - and don't forget to tell your mum you love her xx