Mother’s Day

This morning I woke to the sound of rain on the window, and strong winds outside, so I cuddled under the quilts for a bit longer than normal. Then I got up and had a leisurely brekkie, and spent some quiet time, while still in the dressing gown. I decided as it was Mother’s Day I would take some “time out” for a change.
Later I was getting organised to travel the 2 hours to my home town and catch up with my mother and other family. I remembered the DVD mum had given me to watch which needed to be returned. So it was time to watch it. It was put together by the family of my uncle after he died 2 years ago. They did a fantastic job with photos of his life and family through the years, all set to music. Maybe it was the music that was my undoing, as the words fitted his life so well. Or maybe it was seeing the photos of people from my childhood years, that were no longer with us. Whatever, I played it through twice, and cried all the way through. And then I copied it to my computer to watch again. So many memories were in there. The first photo below is from their wedding day, and my mum on the right was a bridesmaid for her sister. They were married for 60 years, so there are lots of memories. My auntie will be 87 this week and still lives in her house.

And this photo is the four children from that marriage, who are my cousins. We lived in the same area, and our families were very close. The youngest of the four is close to my age, and the oldest married my husband’s brother. The boy at the back died as a young man. The photo is very “60”s” isn’t it?

And this photo was taken today of my parents and my son. Mum and Dad are still living at home and in reasonable health. Mum is 83 now, so quite a few years have elapsed since the photo from her sister’s wedding.

We met at my sister’s house for an impromptu lunch for Mother’s Day. It was a lovely gathering, but unfortunately not all of the important people in my life were able to be there.
There was lots of chatter about family happenings. This year there is to be 2 family weddings, and the arrival of 2 more babies in the next generation. A reminder of the passage of time and life going on. My mum was one of 10 children,(and 6 are still living), but my dad was an only child. So there were 45 cousins from mum’s side and none on the other.
And to throw some more figures around, mum and dad have 5 children, who have produced 15 grandchildren for them, and by the end of the year there will be 9 great grandchildren.

Today was mother’s day and tomorrow is another special day for me, and my 8 year old niece made me a cake. You can see what colourful decorations there were, and the chocolate cake underneath tasted pretty good too. I think Mr 4 was keen for some lollies, and was sitting within reach! I can’t believe just how fast the last year has gone. It hardly seems long since last year’s party.

It has become a habit of mine to search the photo archives and post a pic of my children and grandies when they have a birthday each year. I think it must be payback time, as this photo was posted on facebook this morning from DD3! Another trip down memory lane for today, as this was taken in the caravan when I was holidaying quite a few, lots and lots of years ago. I remember as I was very pregnant at the time and the son that was born is now 27 years old!And he and his partner are only weeks away from having a baby of their own! Appropriate that this was posted today isn't it?? (Wondering if I should be worried about what might get posted tomorrow!)

Well, it’s been a big day, with 4 hours driving, and also lots of travelling down memory lane. A big week coming up, some e-e quilts to be done, an angels sewing day on Thursday, and preparation for this weekends retreat with Heather Ridley.
Catch ya soon,
Blessings, From Jude