Mom And I Are A Handful

Mom enjoyed the snowmen on Tie o’ the Day (see this morning’s post photo). She occasionally had to reach over and feel Tie’s silkiness. And the cape Suzanne made me (see this morning’s post photo)? Mom could not get enough of it. She couldn’t model the cape around the facility though, because it was way too large for her. It would have trailed behind her like a lengthy wedding dress train. And then she would have tripped on it and fallen and broken her other hip. I’m not a big gal, but Mom is gradually shrinking out of even small-size clothing. My cape was a hit with her anyway.

I sat with Mom in the MCR salon while she got her nails painted a sparkly, shimmery pink. She says she thinks it’s the first time she’s ever worn nail polish. Mom said she wanted her nails done so she can catch men. I’m tellin’ ya– if Mom were seriously on the market, she’d be snatched off the market pretty darn quickly. But she is adamant that she is not now– nor will she ever be– on the market. If the guy ain’t Dad, she’s got no interest in the dating game whatsoever.

Mom and I had a swell visit, and we had our usual loud barrel o’ laughs. I admit we are rambunctious when we get together. Today was no exception, as evidenced by the fact that we were given the shhhh-keep-it-down look by an old lady resident who can’t even hear. I don’t think the problem for this woman was the decibel level as much as it was jealousy that Mom and I were having a rip-roarin,’ free-wheelin,’ crazy time. Everyone at the center who saw us, except this one person, seemed to have fun watching and listening to me and Mom have a blast. This particular hard-of-hearing person who somehow hears things as excessively loud is a nice enough lady. I do remember she was in my church ward when I was a kid, and I also remember there wasn’t one week when she didn’t give me the shhhh sign in Sacrament Meeting. Oh, well. My bad.

I’ll be a better influence on Mom the next time I visit her. NOT.

BTW  Suzanne was working today, so I drove down to Delta to see Mom by myself. However, before I left the house, Suzanne told me I had to go to Mom’s Crafts while I was in town– for 10 1/2 yards of quilt fabric. She told me to not bother coming home if I didn’t get the fabric. I cannot win. Fabric stores have become my destiny, and I don’t even sew.

Up Early. Must Beat Rush Hour Traffic.

Tie o’ the Day and Cape o’ the Day are headed out the door with me before dawn, to take one of our lickety-split drives to Delta to see Mom– and we’ll be back this afternoon in time for Judge Judy. Mom and Judge Judy! Two of my all-time fave bad-ass women!

I chose this particular Tie o’ the Day for Mom’s benefit. Mom has a thing for snowmen. Even though I’m not dragging out the daily holiday ties yet, Mom deserves to see this one. Here’s a piece of wisdom for you: There is nothing wrong with trying to make your Mom jolly– ever. If your mom likes snowmen, give her snowmen– no matter what time of year it is.

Cape o’ the Day is the reverse side of the skull/Frida cape I showed off last week. Mom’s gonna get a kick out of this too. She will especially swoon all over it when she finds out Suzanne made it. OMGolly, Suzanne can do no wrong, as far as Mom’s concerned. Suzanne’s general good behavior and craft ability help me get away with my shenanigans. I guess Suzanne’s kind of my redeeming quality, whether or not she’s present with me. Her upstanding essence will be traveling with me today, in the guise of my Suzanne-made cape.