Mom's Birthday: Frozen Yogurt with a Special Twist

Oh, we had a fun Thursday night with my mom this week.

First, here's a section of the chapter I read to her, and then there's a fun story at the end.  :)

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One day early in my motherhood, when I had three preschoolers, my husband, Eric, could tell I needed a break. He arranged to take our children out for an afternoon and dropped me off for a special date with my mom (just the two of us!).

First stop was our favorite frozen yogurt store.

I was giddy with excitement. I was wearing real clothes. I’d put on makeup and done my hair, and just walking into a business establishment without a diaper bag felt like I was walking into a spa.

Mom and I placed our orders, and then when we sat down at our table to eat our yogurt, she said, “Now close your eyes for a minute.”

“What?” I asked—totally confused.

“Close your eyes. I have a surprise.”

So I closed my eyes and listened while my mom rustled around with a paper sack she’d brought with her and set some things on our table.

"What on earth is she doing?" I thought to myself.

Thirty seconds passed, and then a minute. Finally it was quiet, and she said, “Okay! You can open your eyes!”

There on the table were two crystal goblets and two silver spoons.  She’d transferred our yogurt from the paper cups into the goblets, and, with a big smile on her face, said, “Today I am eating yogurt with a queen.”

I wish I could accurately explain how I felt at that point.

I think I must have laughed and looked around to see if anyone in the store thought we looked ridiculous, but really, as we sat together with our goblets of yogurt, laughed about the funny things my children had been doing lately, and talked about our lives and our goals and our families, I thought, “There couldn’t be a more beautiful mother in the whole world.”

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Okay, so I wrote that part of my book from my bed on Sunday morning, while Gracie was snuggled up next to me--reading along and making helpful suggestions.

When I finished, I read the draft aloud to both of my girls (Alia had joined us), and we started talking about what we would do to celebrate my mom's birthday this week. (She turned 79!)

"I know!" Gracie exclaimed, "Let's give Grandma frozen yogurt in crystal goblets!"

There are certain ideas that, when you hear them, just feel perfect.

This was one of them.

All week we anticipated "that moment," when I would read her my story and we would bring in the goblets.

"Are you excited?" my children would ask.

"More than you know..." I would say.

To be honest, I didn't know if her memory would even allow her to connect the two events, but it didn't matter. I wanted to create that moment for my children. I wanted to emblazon that story into their memories so they would never forget their amazing heritage.

Once we arrived on Thursday with our bag of dinner ingredients and a whole set of goblets wrapped in dish towels, we rested for a bit, and then Gracie and I ran down the street to buy the yogurt. 

"You must be having a party!" the cashier said.

"We ARE!" I replied.  And then I told her ALL about it. See how excited I was?

Then Alia decorated Grandma's room with a birthday banner she made out of felt. (She put it behind my mom for the pictures and then moved it to the other wall so she could see it better.)

Aren't they so cute?

I ended up not getting ANY pictures of the yogurt and goblets because my video somehow got deleted, and I didn't take other photos because my hands were busy serving the treats and feeding my mom, but I think it's just as well.

I don't know if the photos could have captured the moment.

My children, my parents, and I sat together, quiet and happy in Mom's room, reliving her beautiful story from the past and then eating our yogurt out of goblets. 

I got to be the one to feed my mom, and with each little spoonful, I felt more and more grateful for this story I get to live.

Thank you for living it with me. It's comforting, really, to know you're here.

Happy birthday, Mom!