Mother's Day Pancakes

Mother’s Day. While part of me is annoyed at the crass triumph of commercialism that promotes the ‘need’ we have to celebrate our mothers by spending money on them, another (perhaps larger) part of me thinks it is important that we all stop and take the time to appreciate ‘mum’. I think it should be more than once a year though.

Today my focus was on Kylie, ensuring the children had a chance to tell her of their love and appreciation. Things didn’t start so well. Lilli had Kylie and I out of bed far too early – certainly before I had a chance to prepare breakfast in bed. Nevertheless, Kylie ate delicious muesli, the very best (Gippsland) yogurt, and then some eggs on toast for a special Mother’s Day breakfast. The children shared their cards and gifts. I spoke briefly to my mum, Kylie’s mum, and Nanna Bunt before realising we were late to church.

Chanel sang a Mother’s day song in church, and our sacrament meeting also focused on the Christlike example of the speaker’s mothers. Sunday school was uplifting. My priesthood lesson on prayer was flat – perhaps because we only had three of us in attendance – but as we closed I recalled two things my mother always taught me about prayer. I shared those things and left the meeting feeling uplifted. Mum always corrected me when I said “I hope” for something. Instead, mum would scold me, “say I pray”, and then do it. Mum taught me not to hope until AFTER I’d prayed. I also shared my favourite story of mum insisting on prayer when we were lost out in the Watagan mountains on a 4WD trip. As I recall, Dad insisted on turning around and trying to find our way out. Mum suggested, then demanded, we pray. After our prayer we drove another few hundred metres before finding someone who was able to direct us to our destination. I felt grateful for my mother and her example of faith to me.

Lunch was shared with some friends, D & A and their four children. We were supposed to have a picnic but terrible winds blew that plan away. We ate pancakes with ice-cream, raspberries, peaches, and syrup. Decadent. Then Kylie and A played craft while D and I took the kids to the beach for a walk. Tonight I cleaned, spoke on the phone to wish Nanna Coulson a happy mother’s day, and put the kids to bed. Kylie has an upset stomach so I’ve left her to recover and relax. Hopefully she’ll feel better in the morning. It’s been a big day and I’m ready to drop.

The past two weeks have gone quickly, but not a great deal has been worth reporting. Work is still failing to inspire, but it is enough for us, and we are grateful for it. Abbie May ran in her district cross-country and shocked us with her result. Last year at the district event Abbie came 17^th in her group. This year she improved to come 9^th. We were delighted with Abbie’s effort and she was thrilled to have made such a leap in twelve months.

Beyond that, Chanel had a school camp for two nights. We missed her and were pleased to have her return. I rode my bike to Gosford (200km) last Saturday for a family dinner. Kylie drove with the children (I have a very tolerant wife). Kylie and I watched a movie, The Avengers, which was mildly entertaining (I give it 6.5 out of 10).

Lastly, during the week some friends came to us when we discovered some serious psychological difficulties for their teenage child. We were able to spend some hours with them, listening, offering support, and eventually working with them until they reached a point where they felt comfortable seeking further assistance from appropriately trained people. We felt grateful to be able to be trusted, to be able to help, and to know that our own children are healthy and thriving. Our lives are blessed beyond deserving.