Liam Mummy Day

A few people have asked what we did for Mother's Day.

Given the general proximity to my birthday, and my true belief that Mother's Day should reflect kindness and respect, not Hallmark cards and lavish gifts, we downplayed Mother's Day.

This year, we started the day by going to church. Liam was really tired, so he wasn't as focused as usual.

--Aside #1--
Lately Liam has been sleeping in shifts: part of the night on his bed, some on the floor of his room or in the hallway, some of the night in Mummy & Daddy's room (either on the floor, on the mattress on the floor, on a pillow, or *gasp* on the dog's bed). I don't know what to do about this. He panics if his bedroom door is closed. I think it's that his bottom molars are breaking through. (I'm brave, and I check the toothy status... Liam has yet to bite me, not even once.) Liam never lets us know when he's in pain, but I'm starting to catch on.

Back to Mother's Day... Liam likes church, though squirming is standard protocol. He sings, mostly random letters of the alphabet, while everyone else sings the hymns. Frequently, he points out the obvious, "Windows!"

This Sunday, he doted affection on Mommy. I received kiss after kiss. He loudly whispered his slurred "Ah-wah-ooh" over and over. I think it was all the talk about Mothers on Mother's Day. He understands a lot now. Despite his sudden interest in Mom, Liam didn't get through the whole service, so towards the end, he visited the nursery for the first time.

After church, he took a nap. When he woke up, we all went for a picnic at a local park where a girls softball competition was winding down. We ate our lunch and Liam played with his soccer ball. Then we went up to Seattle for a trek to the REI store.

When REI has a sale, it's worth the extra drive to get to the Flagship Store downtown. Liam had a blast climbing through all the tents, setup in a small camp village in the middle of the store. In the end we decided to buy a new tent, with hopes of testing it out soon. Lester used to do a lot of camping back in England and Ireland, and New York. Eventually, I'd like to take a trip to Wisconsin and Michigan, driving around Lake Michigan.

--Aside #2--
Last summer Liam and I visited Wisconsin, and I realized how much the state has to offer a young, adventurous family. (Milwaukee's Lakefront, The Dells, Door County, etc.) Then I watched the old movie Somewhere in Time again, and remembered the fun of Mackinac Island (in Michigan) where all transportation is by foot or horse. The only problem with this mythical vacation is hotels: they are hard to come by during the summer, and in most of the tourist areas, they are overpriced and dreadful. Our solution? Camping.

We will probably hold off on this National Lampoon's Cheeseland Adventure until Liam is old enough to really appreciate it (maybe next year). But at least now we have a good tent.

Mother's Day ended the way every good day ends: with all three of us exhausted.

In his two-year-old, "Mine Mentality" Liam decided that "Mommy Day" is for Liam's Mommy only. I tried to explain that everyone had a mommy. To demonstrate this point, we matched up his friends and their mommies.

Who is D's Mommy?
"Shannon," he said.

Who is Suri's Mommy?
"hmmm," he thought, and then figured it out. "Joya Suri Mommy!"

Who is Mommy's Mommy?
"Mommy?" He was confused.
"No, not quite," I said.
"Nana?" He tried again.
"Yep. That was a hard one!"

Who is Daddy's Mummy?
"Hmmm...." Which means he has no idea. He changed the subject.

Two hours later, at bedtime, he figured it out.
"Mummy Mummy Nana. Daddy Mummy Gwanny."
Translation: Mommy's Mommy is Nana. Daddy's Mommy is Granny.

I reminded him that all moms celebrate Mother's Day. I suggested that we wish all of our Mommy friends and Nana and Granny a happy Mother's Day.

"No, Mummy. No. Nu-uh. No Mommy Day Shannon and Gwanny. Liam Mummy Day only," he said, very sure of himself. Then he gave me a hug (on both sides, like he always does) and he gave me a big kiss. Finally, I finished rocking him to sleep.