>I knew I was in a spot of trouble when I woke up on Mother’s Day morning crammed into a Portland, OR hotel room with all four kids. Breakfast in bed turned out to be the free, rather lousy breakfast in the lobby of the hotel. I contemplated grabbing some food and stealing away, but the thought of ambling down the long corridor with a boiled egg, a paper bowl full of Cheerios and a cup of hotel coffee didn’t really appeal. And while I’m a fan (in theory) of local presses, breakfast in bed with the Sunday edition of The Oregonian didn’t do it for me either.
We managed to salvage breakfast and spent a lovely day (as we did the weekend) with M’s family. And then, because we apparently can’t get enough together time, we capped the day off by driving back to Seattle. And getting stuck in traffic. Lots of it. There’s nothing like a 4 plus hour car drive to scream, “Happy Mother’s Day.” Sucker.
So, when a friend told me that in a recent poll, what most mothers want most for M Day is to be left the hell alone for a few hours, I wasn’t at all surprised. Granted, I’d feel somewhat guilty, and maybe even (dare I say it?) lonely if I spent all day alone, I would be just fine with a few hours, or even half the day off. I got so little time alone that I took to hiding in bathrooms, ignoring the pleas, knocks and bangings of little hands.
One of the kids asked, “When do we get Kids’ Day?” And then I explained that the reason we have Mother’s Day is b/c every bloody day is Kids’ Day and this was his big chance to thank me. And I suspect they get it. Cute, homemade gifts came my way. And I could see them actually trying to be good. The boys scratched each other without breaking skin, I could swear that somebody asked me to open the car window before he farted, and a certain three year old gave me the invaluable gift of a long car journey without a single puke break. All very considerate.
As for the several hours spent in my own company, I’ll know better for next year.