Friday's FIVE!

I love my Mama! I've always been a Mama's little girl - I loved my Daddy ... but my heart belonged to my Mother. Mom and I have always spent a lot of time together - and I love that I have so many wonderful memories with her. We have laughed and we have cried - and I have shared all my secrets with my Mom. My mother celebrated her 76th birthday on Sunday this week and today's Friday FIVE! is a celebration of five things I think of when I think of my Mama! Happy Birthday, Mama - I love you heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and....

1. When the girls were little, Mom and I went out to lunch every Tuesday! We would often go to Mr. Steak in Marion or MCL in Muncie. Mom was always watching her weight and she would get a salad or fish for lunch - but there was always room for a little cinnamon roll or date bread with cream cheese!!! What fun memories those days are!!! We still enjoy lunches out together - but my work schedule makes it a less frequent event than it was when I was a 'stay at home' Mom. Because we don't do it very often - we cherish the minutes we have together when we do have the chance to be together for lunch.

2. My Mother is an avid reader - and she has been all of my life. My mother always has a book in progress. I can remember when we were children - Roger and I would get her books for her birthday and we would pick out any book with a woman in a negligee running frantically away from a castle. Books have always been - and still are a very significant part of her life.

3. Neatly manicured - long fingernails. My mothers fingernails have been a trademark for her.
They used to be very, very, very long - but she always kept them neat and painted. Even during summer gardening or holiday cooking - her fingernails would be pretty and neatly manicured. My Mother still has long manicured nails - not nearly as long as those really, really long nails of the early 1980's - but she usually has a nail file in every room in the house!

4. COOKIES - COOKIES - AND MORE COOKIES!!! My Mom has to be one of the best cookie makers in the whole wide world - I can remember Christmas cookie platters that would put Martha Stewart and Good Housekeeping to shame. There would be chocolate chunk, oatmeal carmelitas, a very rich dark chocolate with a coconut filling, a smal rolled cookie with nuts on the outside and a dollop of frosting in the center - and powder sugar covered Mexican wedding cakes.... oh yum... yum... those cookies were wonderful!

5. My mother loves clothes and she has has always loved to shop! We used to shop after our lunches on Tuesdays - we would shop for clothes or we would shop for fabric to make clothes. I can remember shopping in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne and Chicago - When I see brightly colored scarves and red and pink or gold colored clothes...I think of my Mother!

Happy Happy Birthday Mom - I love you so much!!! XOXOXOXOXOX