first of all, to all my readers who are moms, i wish you a happy mother's day. it certainly has become a retail and hallmark holiday, however, it still honors mothers, who rarely get their due.

so today started out slow, but it got moving quickly. naturally, we went to sunday mass. my son purchased five carnations for his grandmothers, godmother and me. it was a great cause; the money was donated to a birth right organization. then i went shopping with the little guy while the big bro and dad got a haircut and ran some errands. got say, little m sure has a lot of personality. we had a blast at the store, and he know how to ham it up.

dinner was at our home. tom and i prepared shishkabobs-- chicken and pork. the meat was stacked with vidalia onion, red pepper, green peeper, mushrooms, and polish sausage. they were marinated and basted with asian ginger dressing. so yummy!!! i made a simple white and basmati rice blend to serve with the kabobs, including a wine and soy sauce blend to pour over. tom loves a well grilled meat, so we threw in some jumbo hot dogs and a ground deer meat burger (blended with bob evans sausage to moisten the burger). tk brought a delicious tri-colored spiral pasta salad with black olives, tomatoes, and green peppers. we also had baked potatoes, including a topping bar that included colby shredded cheese, sour cream, butter, and bacon. slices of tomato, dill pickle slices, finely-chopped onion, and bacon strips were also available for the burgers. tom's mom also brought a nutty ferrero rocher cake and we also had a strawberry and blackberry fruit salad.

i think what i loved best about today, even though i cooked, was not having to wait for my food. i liked not being one of several falling into line for a brunch buffet. i liked being at home, surrounded by my family, letting the two reasons for which i am celebrated today be themselves. we served food hot. we picked what we wanted, we had seconds, and thirds, and fourths... we took as long as we wanted. you can get things your way at a restaurant, but not quite like this :)

i took a walk with my mom and my oldest. i spent some time with my baby. i laughed with my sister. my husband and i spent time together. all in all, a great day!